Offshore Denmark "Sunrise"

TheTamshee says: life offshore is good. Waking up to soak up this morning sunrise is worth a bag of Gold Krone

UFO @ Inchgarth

TheTamshee says: while taking this red hot view of the night sky it was not evident that some mysterious flying saucer had broken cover or was the offending object one of the security lights on the garage wall, ye lets not fool ourselves, there's no such thing as UFO's-or is there. I can't explain the cylindrical object in the top right corner of this shot looking out over Peat Law

Digital Photographer 2009

Category: Planet Earth. Elegance by Tiberio Taverni, Italy

Picture: DIGITAL CAMERA PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2009

The Tamshee says: this is photography at it's best, Dragonfly with the bodily features of some alien women with blown glass space helmet, hoovering majestically in silent whisper. Click Here for other contenders.

The Quarry "Face"

TheTamshee says: the man with the "verse" has once again scribe fine words in recognition of the talented artist, Claudia Massie. The Jolomo judging panel have a fine collection of young artists, with varying brush strokes to select from, but I believe that the border artist will spring a surprise Win.

Atlantis Returns

The space shuttle Atlantis and its crew of seven returned to Earth on Sunday, ending their exalted Hubble Space Telescope repair mission in sunny California after stormy weather prevented a return to NASA’s Florida home base. Click Here for Nasa Video footage. Mission Control waited as long as possible for the weather to improve before finally giving up and directing commander Scott Altman and his crew to the Mojave Desert.
Atlantis swooped through a clear morning sky and touched down on the runway at Edwards Air Force Base. “Welcome home, Atlantis,” Mission Control radioed once the shuttle came to a safe stop. “Congratulations on a very successful mission, giving Hubble a new set of eyes that will continue to expand our knowledge of the universe.” TheTamshee: has been debating the shuttle design with some work colleagues. Here's the facts: The space shuttle system is made up of three main components: •The two Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs), which provide 80 percent of launch thrust. •The huge rust-colored External Tank (ET), which feeds fuel to three
Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) during launch•The orbiter itself, which serves as the crew's home in space and is equipped to dock with the International Space Station. NASA has made many safety improvements to the shuttle system, including redesigning and refitting the External Tank to reduce the risk of foam and ice hitting the orbiter during liftoff.

Eggo's Birthday

TheTamshee says:
Health to you-------Wealth to you
All the best that life can give to you.
May fortune still be kind to you,
And happiness be true to you,
And life be long and good to you,
Is the toast of all your friends to you.
Birthdays are good for you; the more you have the longer you live!

Welcome to Club "50" --- BoB

Tamshee's Look Alike

TheTamshee: came across this character while visiting one of the finest castles Scotland has to offer. Spooked the Indy kids, they thought it was dad chopping a few logs. Can you name the Castle ? It is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland.

The castle sits atop a volcanic crag, which forms part of the ???????? Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs, giving it a strong defensive position. Its strategic location, guarding what was, until the 1930s, the farthest downstream crossing of the River Forth, has made it an important fortification from the earliest times. Most of the principal buildings of the castle date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. A few structures of the fourteenth century remain, while the outer defences fronting the town date from the early eighteenth century. Several Scottish Kings and Queens have been crowned in this new city, including Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1543. There have been at least eight sieges of this Castle, including several during the Wars of Scottish Independence, with the last being in 1746, when Bonnie Prince Charlie unsuccessfully tried to take the castle. The Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and is now a tourist attraction managed by Historic Scotland.

Mar Gun "Ghost" Ship

The Seattle based Mar-Gun grounded on Staraya Beach on the 5th March 2009 some 200 yards off the north end of St. George Island. all five crewmembers were rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter and delivered to St. Paul, a narrow peninsula on the southern tip of St. Paul Island, Alaska. The picture above was taken on the 29th March, the day after a heavy storm with 120mph winds and whiteout snow hit the island.
TheTamshee: could'nt resist the combination of stunning picture of stricken fishing vessel consumed by the elements, with ghostly figure on the Port Fwd hull. The US Coast Guard had to battle low temperatures strong winds, surf conditions and icing while utilizing drums and a commercial helicopter to remove the fuel oil. Transfer hoses and two pumps were employed to remove about 17,195 gallons of oils from the vessel to a mobile tank on shore last week.

Barn Owls "Tyto alba"

Owls are fascinating birds and there are many different species with the tawny owl and the barn owl, the most common varieties in the UK. Because owls are birds of prey unless you live in the countryside or in a similar area which attracts a good population of rodents, such as in an area with a good amount of rough grassland nearby, it’s unlikely that an owl will take up roost in your garden. However, if your surrounding environment is suitable or you’re aware that owls do, indeed, frequent the area in which you live, it’s worth providing an additional nesting site in your garden if you want to attract them. If you’ve a large garden or have acres of land, it’s useful to leave some grassy areas unmown as this will attract rodents as it provides cover but is also a good hunting ground for owls. Also keep grassy edges alongside hedges and ditches unkempt and provide lookout posts for the owls to perch on. TheTamshee: is hooked, the graceful owl is a majestic creature of great beauty. The Indy kids have listened to the Twit-twa-Woo on many occasions in close proximity to Inchgarth. This lead to TheTamshee getting the 10,000,000 million candle torch, with kids in tow, out searching the surrounding big sycamores and chestnut tree to see if we could track down this solitary and nocturnal bird with the piercing eye's. The Indy kids interest in owls was first ignited when we pitch up at Cayton Bay Caravan Park close to Scarborough. After flying the kites in an adjacent field for some time, we headed back to the park while walking through an area set aside for wildlife - when we came across a large nesting box with the big eye's of two young owls jockeying for prime position at the nesting box entrance. We observed the birds for some days thereafter but left for home before the fledglings made their first flight. These great memories have inspired me to make a nesting box in an attempt to attract our very known resident owl. Time will tell.

Tantallon Castle

Tantallon Castle is a mid-14th century fortress, located about three miles south-east of North Berwick, in East Lothian, Scotland. It sits atop the rugged coastline opposite the Bass Rock, looking out onto the Firth of Forth. TheTamshee: and family enjoy hooking up the Speedbird and taking the short trip to Tantallon Caravan Park. North Berwick has lots to offer, with a visit to the Seabird Centre to track the wildlife on the Rock, well worth the entry fee. The castle is one of the most impressive land marks that I have come across on my travels, with recent stories of ghosts adding to the charm of the castle that was badly damaged by
Oliver Cromwell's forces in 1651 Click Here for ghostly video footage.

Magic Carpet In Space

A Japanese astronaut has been demonstrating his skills at flying a "magic carpet" while aboard the International Space Station.

Koichi Wakata, 45, was taking part in 16 unusual tasks suggested by the Japanese public - from nursery school children to a 90-year-old man - to show how tricky life can be when in zero gravity.

The suggestions included folding laundry and inserting eye drops. In order to fly his "magic carpet", Mr Wakata had to stick his feet to a white sheet using adhesive tape. He was then able to glide through the Japanese laboratory Kibo (Hope) within the space station. Mr Wataka said: "I flew on this magic carpet by using adhesive tape so that the soles of my feet stayed on it." He also showed particular deftness at inserting eye drops in outer space by squeezing some liquid out, letting it perch on the container and then bringing it to his eye. TheTamshee says: it seems logical that astronauts need to combat stress and what could be better than indulging in some light hearted entertainment, surfing in zero gravity is novel but rather sss-low, I mean it's not going to get the adrenalin flowing

Chelsea Flower Show

Plasticine garden misses out in favour of simple designs at Chelsea Flower Show Photo: GETTY
The world's biggest and most complex Plasticine garden designed by Top Gear presenter James May is one of the few entrants at the Royal Horticultural Society show not to win an official award. However the RHS did award the colourful display with a Plasticine gold award that is now proudly displayed alongside the official awards on the adjoining gardens. Mr May said no-one is "too posh for Plasticine" and even managed to smuggle a garden gnome into the model, which is strictly against Chelsea rules. "They [the RHS] had to admit it is a nice idea and people like it but they cannot give me a medal alongside the other proper gardens otherwise that would open the flood gates to all sorts of ideas like gardens made of balsa-wood or something. "So, they decided to give me a Plasticine medal for taking part without compromising the judging process. The Plasticine garden which is part of a series of projects Mr May is carrying out using toys, is already proving popular with the public. The garden was modelled by hundreds of volunteers including schoolchildren, war veterans and professional artists from the Aardman studios where Wallace and Gromit were created. Many people commented about a "smell of childhood" rather than flowers from the model using two-and-a-half tonnes of Plasticine. However some gardeners protested against a garden without any living flowers bringing down the tone of Chelsea.
"Some people have said it is a bit camp and a bit vulgar but I cannot do much about that – its modelled out of Plasticine," said Mr May. "It has been great fun and we can still go for the people's vote." Bod Sweet, Head of Shows Development at the RHS, welcomed the inclusion of different ideas that might encourage more people to be interested in gardening. This year's show has seen a credit crunch garden built with no budget and an underwater garden with piranhas as well as the Plasticine model. "We are seeing some different takes on gardening at Chelsea this year and that is quite interesting," he said. The Daily Telegraph garden by Ulf Nordfjell won Best Show Garden this year. TheTamshee's: good lady loves spending her days nourturing what started off as a gardeners nightmare at Inchgarth. The efforts over the years are a joy indeed, with an abundance of shrubs, fruit trees and flowers to reward her hard graft. As a treat, she set off on monday for the big smog with best friend Annie, first visiting Kew Gardens then moving onto Chelsea Flower Show for the rest of the week. First day report, awesome, wow, brillant, saw the Titchmarsh, he's goergous. Love you!

Hubble Telescope "Repaired"

Space shuttle astronauts have sent the restored Hubble telescope off on a new voyage of discovery, bidding it farewell on behalf of the planet. Hubble - considered better than new following five days of repairs and upgrades - will never be seen up close by humans again. The Atlantis shuttle mission was Nasa's last service call to the telescope. The shuttle and telescope had just crossed the Atlantic, and were soaring 350 miles above the coast of north-western Africa, when astronaut Megan McArthur used a robot arm to release the snares gripping Hubble. Then the shuttle slowly backed away. "Hubble has been released," reported commander Scott Altman. "It's safely back on its journey of exploration as we begin steps to conclude ours. Looking back on this mission, it's been an incredible journey for us as well." Mission Control radioed congratulations: "It's wonderful to see Hubble, the most famous scientific instrument of all time, newly upgraded and ready for action thanks to you." With Hubble flying on its own again, the seven astronauts looked ahead to Friday's planned landing. But first they had to inspect their ship one last time to make sure it had not suffered any serious damage from space junk. The telescope's unusually high orbit had placed the shuttle and its crew at increased risk and, because of the lack of a refuge, prompted Nasa to keep a rescue ship on stand-by until the end of the 11-day flight.
To improve their safety, the astronauts dropped Atlantis into an egg-shaped orbit that is, much of the time, lower than the telescope's junk-ridden orbit. TheTamshee says: Scotty Altman and his fellow astronauts deserve high praise. To risk their lifes on this tricky space mission, to squench the worlds thirst for cosmic pictures, is indeed honourable. "Safe Oot-Safe In"

Edward Jenner "Ghost"

A ghostly image, possibly that of Edward Jenner, can be seen through the doorway in the attic of the Edward Jenner Museum. Article curtosity of the Telegraph. Photo: PA .

This photograph seems to have captured a hazy image of a man sitting on a chair in the attic of the Edward Jenner Museum, in Berkeley. The picture was taken by BBC photographer Chris Sandys who was gathering images for a story on the museum's new Ghosts in the Attic exhibition. Mr Sandys said: "I don't believe in ghosts myself, but this is strange.
"As soon as I'd taken a panoramic photo, I reviewed the image on the camera, and straight away noticed this strange formation of light, shaped like a figure, through the doorway in the next room. "Without moving I did a few takes to try and work out what had caused it but couldn't see anything. It was so weird." Jenner was the pioneer of smallpox vaccination and the father of immunology. He was born in Berkeley in 1749 where he spent most of his career as a doctor in the town before he died in 1823. Sarah Parker, the museum's director, said: "There have always been stories of ghosts at the Edward Jenner Museum. "We usually take them with a large pinch of salt. "We are truly flabbergasted by the image. You can basically see through a doorway what looks like a figure reclining in a chair, only there is no chair there. "Who knows whether it is Jenner himself. We have graffiti from soldiers previously billeted in the attic rooms from the late 19th century and perhaps this is one of them or even one of Jenner's servants." TheTamshee says: the ghostly image ploy to add an extra dimension and point of interest works everytime. For me the photograph is interesting enough in it's own right.

Kew Gardens

TheTamshee's: good lady is visiting Kew Gardens today to see Kew bursting with colour in its 250th anniversary year. Kew's pivotal role as a world-leader in plant science and conservation gives visitors a glimpse into the important role botanic gardens play in the future of the planet. Exotic orchids,

wildflowers from across the world and outstanding garden designs are on display. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew takes the date of its official 'birth' from the year that William Aiton was appointed to care for and expand the gardens at Kew for Princess Augusta.

That was 1759 and the Gardens have expanded and developed beyond all recognition since then.

Bird Watch @ Inchgarth

TheTamshee says: the Indy kids decided that the bird watch feeding station needed some refurbishment. So out came the ladder, a few hand tools and a light sprinkling of DIY. Hey presto the starlings, blue and coal tits with the forever present robins returned in droves to get there fill of fine seeds and nuts. No Nuthatch to date, we wait patiently.

Sackboy "Astronaut"

White House withdraws nomination of Maj Gen Charles F Bolden to be deputy administration of NASA; cites Defense Department directive to limit service of senior military officers to civilian jobs during current war on terrorism. TheTamshee says: the top brass on the hill have finally come to there senses with the probably announcement of "Little Big Planet" hero, "Sackboy" as the most logical choice as new administrator of Nasa. The vastly experienced astronaut has spent a lifetime exploring the outer universe with more mission crew patches than any other astronaut on planet earth. At this moment in time the Indy kids cannot determined if some Alien traveller has more cosmic miles than their intrepid adventurer.

Timber Harvesting

TheTamshee says: while travelling North on the A7 towards the homestead at Selkirk, the Indy kid spotted the tree harvester at work - so we decided to take a closer look. These woodland trees take a kids childhood to mature before being felled and logged in under 2 minutes. It reminded me of tree planting in the early days of the Brother-In laws thriving business.

Eric Cantona

TheTamshee says: with Sir Alex's Man "U" on the verge of the third title on the trot. Eric Cantona, a former star of the red devils with the touch of a magician has hit the big time in the film industry, Click Here for the full Telegraph article on the career of a true united icon.

Grey Mare's Tail & Loch Skene

TheTamshee: and family got the hiking boots on and set off with destination, Grey Mare's Tail and Loch Skene in mind. Situated just 10 miles North East of Moffat is the "Tail" a spectacular 200 ft, waterfall in a dramatic moorland setting below White Coomb (2,690 ft ) The waterfall is one of the most spectacular landmarks in southern Scotland. The "Tail Burn" plunges 200ft into a gorge forming the fifth highest cascade in Britian. The challenge for TheTamshee was preventing the Indy kids from venturing off the stone path for some heather loup-in and plunging over the rather steep sided ravine. There was plenty to see on this fine day, mountain goats,
common lizards darting across the path way but far to quick to get a photograph. The female Peregrine Falcon was nesting on eggs, the NTS has a camera on site, open at weekends. The climb up passed the falls is quite challenging, and caution needed when young kids in tow.


The loch remains unpolluted and relatively undisturbed and it's shores have a desolate yet tranquil atmosphere. Golden Eagles once nested on the islet at the south end, but the last one was killed in the nineteenth century. Britain's rarest fish, the Vendace, has recently been introduced to Lock Skene as part of a species recovery programme.

View "Inchgarth Deck"

TheTamshee says: while capturing this early evening shot of the setting sun with light rain shower, the mysteries cone shape ( top right ) was not evident in field of view, what can it be ? certainly not a bird or plane. Could it possibily be a rain drop ? or are we being watched by the alien nation ?

The Tully Saucer Nest

In Queensland, Australia, near the town of Tully, on January 19 1966, 28 year-old farm worker George Pedley was working the fields with his tractor. Thinking he had detected a problem with the tractor's engine, he bent down to listen to it more closely. Just then, as he heard a sharp hissing sound, he looked up and was startled to see a disc-shaped object lifting off from the nearby Horseshoe Lagoon. The mystery craft ascended 30 feet into the air and then sped off, dipping slightly as it passed beneath the trees. Pedley later described the disc as metallic in appearance, about 25 feet wide, with no visible portholes and no sign of any occupants. TheTamshee: enjoys reading these fasinating accounts of strange encounters with UFO's.

click here for more details

Aberfoyle Ospreys

TheTamshee: and family visited the David Marshall Lodge Visitor Centre in Achray Forest which is part of Queen Elizabeth Forest Park. Travelling from Stirling follow the A84(T), A873 then A81 west to Aberfoyle. The Visitor Centre is a mile north of Aberfoyle on the A821 (Dukes Pass) The female osprey was calling, while guarding the nest ( no eggs ) waiting patiently for the ringed male to return with fish dish of the day. The weather was rather wet which spoiled our forest stroll to the "waterfall of the little fawn" scenic all year round and spectacular in spate but be careful, in days gone-by teenagers have fallin victim to the deceiving drop to the rocks below. Happy but soaked to the skin, the Indy kids explored the adventure park with a one off experience of the later to be called "the death slide" because the wee lad descended the zig zag wet slide at break neck speed, ending up in a heap in the muddy puddle.
The lodge was slate-built in 1960 as a focal point for the the Forest Park with a viewpoint that commands a magnificent prospect westwards towards Ben Lomond , southwards to the Fintry, Campsie and Kilpatrick Hills and eastwards, of the Carse of Stirling dominated by Castle.

Ezekiel One "Andy Lloyd"

"Ezekiel One" is a novel about conspiracy, 2012, Planet X and the battle over Truth. It takes a long, hard look at the way the Planet X subject is covered by the media, and how it can be undermined by debunkers. Over the years I have built up ideas about the Anunnaki, as described by Zecharia Sitchin, and a vision of the Dark Star binary system. I wanted to bring this vision to my readership, and decided to do so through the medium of a fast-moving psychological thriller. That format allows me to look at the ideas of Zecharia Sitchin in a creative way, and to speculate about the Anunnaki and their continuing role in our modern world. "Ezekiel One" is a science fiction thriller full of political intrigue and hard-headed action. Parts of the story have already come true, particularly regarding the takeover of the London Evening Standard by Alexander Lebedev. This bizarre coincidence has been reported in local and national papers in England. TheTamshee says: if you are into your UFO's and conspiracy theory's, then grab a copy of Andy's vision of the dark star, it is not beyond the realms of possibility, superpowers taking out the opposition satellites, yes I can buy into that!

Red Kites @ Argaty

TheTamshee says: if you enjoy watching birds of prey in the open country side then get yourself to Lerrocks Farm, Argaty, Doune. On this farm just north of Stirling, the RSPB run Central Scotland's only red kite feeding station where visitors can watch these exciting birds and their spectacular flying. The farm lies on the Braes of Doune in the area of Central Scotland where the RSPB and Scottish Natural Heritage have reintroduced the red kite. It is with their help that we are providing a facility for enjoying the birds in comfort but without the risk of disturbing what is still a fragile popluation

Unicorn Tapestries

In 2001 West Dean weavers began a new and unusual project, recreating a set of seven tapestries for Historic Scotland (the government agency that safeguards ancient monuments and historic buildings across Scotland).
The tapestries being recreated are the Hunt of the Unicorn (1495 – 1505) series from the Cloisters Museum in New York. Work is underway on two sites: at the Tapestry Studio in West Dean, West Sussex and at Stirling Castle in Scotland. The team in Scotland are making a tapestry in full view of the general public, demonstrating how tapestry is made and to open this medium up to a wider audience. TheTamshee: and family visited the studio in Stirling Castle to witness the skilled weaver at work. It must be a surreal atmosphere for the craftsman with his back to the crowd while his every stitch is scrutinised by the assembled crowd. There is no photography allowed within the studio but strange things happen within the walls of ancient castles. On our exit the Indy kids spotted the ever watching Gargoyle in the adjacent rock face

The Indy Kids

The Indy Kids had a great holiday up Stirling but the wheels finally came off the Speedbird, totally tyre'd out

Go Atlantis

Lights covering the fixed service structure on Launch Pad 39A cast their glow over space shuttle Atlantis. The shuttle waits the arrival of the payload canister with its cargo of Hubble Space Telescope equipment. The payload will be transferred into Atlantis' payload bay for the 11-day STS-125 mission to service the Hubble Telescope.Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett TheTamshee says: technology has no limits, space the final frontier will be conquered " there's life Jim, but not as we know it" The payload canister with the Hubble Space Telescope equipment heads for Launch Pad 39A. In the foreground, a bobcat runs across the road.

Crop Circles UK

TheTamshee says: it seem to me that some farmer has had some time on his hands-the tracks in and out are tell tale signs, what do you think ?

Peacock Display

TheTamshee says: the Safari Park at Blair Drummond is always a great day out for the Indy kids. On this occassion the Peacock courtship display caught the attention of the wee lass. This was only one of many wildlife attractions to be seen. The birds of prey are another favourite with the park rangers giving an insight into the daily life of sea eagles, harris hawks, barn owls and off course, the magestic griffon vulture

Sputnik 1

Sputnik 1, launched on Oct.4, 1957, became the first artificial satellite to successfully orbit the Earth. It was a metallic sphere about 2 feet across, weighing 184 lbs (84 kg), with long "whiskers" pointing to one side, and stayed in orbit for 6 months before falling back to Earth. Its rocket booster, weighing 4 tons, also reached orbit and was easily visible from the ground. TheTamshee says: while checking out The Works book store in Stirling the Indy kids came across a magic skeleton book of space discovery- brilliant bed time stories for the Indy kid who says he would like to be an astronaut.

View from "Cuthill Brae"

The fine view from Cuthill Brae to the distant Trossachs.

Blair Drummond Caravan Park

TheTamshee's back: there's been a bit of a hiatus regarding the blogging due to a family trip to wonderful Stirling-shire! our preferred choice of site is the immaculate
Blair Drummond Caravan Park, situated 1 mile or so passed the Safari park, take a right turn up Cuthill Brae then straight over the hill while being mindful of the three speed bumps en-route. The space-ish pitches are sited in and around magnificent walled gardens with rhododendrons in full bloom. It's also offers a wonderland of exploration for the Indy kids with an abundance of woodland for tree climbing and foraging. The play area is well equiped with zip wire and monkey bars.

The Barn Owl

The Indy kid stroked this magnificient creature at Aberfoyle today

Fermi GR "Space Telescope"

An international team of astronomers have used the world’s biggest radio telescope to look deep into the brightest galaxies that NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope can see. The study solidifies the link between an active galaxy’s gamma-ray emissions and its powerful radio-emitting jets. Credit: NASA/DOE/Fermi LAT Collaboration and NRAO/AUI/MOJAVE Team/M. Kadler. TheTamshee says: to look beyond the minds eye, outer space, the everlasting journey ?

Black Slug Invasion

TheTamshee says: Is there some mysterious "garden" plot to have the earth taken over by the Black Slug. These pests can grow up to 20 cm in length. Their colour is very variable - white, red, orange or grey are all common although black is most usual, often with an orange fringe. There is no keel, and the skin is coarse and granular. The sole is pale, sometimes orange, and the mucus is white. The black slug may rock from side to side when disturbed! Familiar to all gardeners because of its spectacular size, the black slug is rarely as destructive as other smaller species but can cause damage in spring to seedlings of many kinds. Later, when its preferred diet of rotting vegetation, fungi, manure and even dead animals is more readily available, it causes little damage in the garden - other than promoting heart failure if you step on one when chasing the neighbours cat from your prized veg patch.