Reason to be cheerful part 1

A lot is being said of the decision to erect 103 (reduced number) wind turbines in the go ahead with the development in the central mainland. This decision to go ahead has had a mixed reception and I certainly think that this will have a big impact on tourism and wildlife option and which will be irreversible. If it was going to happen at all, then a site in Yell may have been a better option, providing that a survey was done to assess the impact on wildlife and that it would not be near any housing.

This week we also took part in the Mori survey on the quality of life in the islands. At first it seemed strange that we had been chosen, but this goes on the house not the people. Anyhow I think it’s always good to take part in surveys as it can help determine how much you know about the subject. Shetland has the best quality of life according to several different survey’s and we both feel that we have done the right thing moving up here.

                                                                                           Sumburgh

 With the lowest crime rate in the UK, good health care and transport and a better sense of community where people support each other in a number of ways it’s a great place to live. When you are 60 you are entitled to a free bus and ferry pass, not 65 as it is in Sheffield.

There are grants available to help you keep your house warm and we have already applied for this so when we move into our new house sometime in August we might be in a position to start work before the winter comes. We are looking especially at the Air to Air heating system which takes a day to install and makes a big saving on heating costs. With no gas available it’s all a lot dearer with either solid fuel (not the best to have in your old age- a way off this yet), Oil and electricity as options.

At present we can only keep in contact via mobile phones which is not cheap and with no internet in the rented cottage we have to go to the library to catch up with things. We thought of a different way to keep in contact with our friends Mavis and Ron, we decided to stand in front of a shop covered by the Shetland webcam; we arranged a time to wave and spoke on the mobile – an alternative to Skype for now.

                                                                Surprising what you can buy at the bus stop

Great news on Friday as we had the keys handed to us for our new house in Sandwick. We already know a few of the neighbours having met them at other functions and the local church.

The phone and internet, via Plus net, and Sky TV should be available when our furniture arrives around the 15 August much later than we wanted , but Specialised Movers has to  sort out ferries and also ensure they can deliver our things and get back the same night to catch the ferry. On a few days the ferry sets off at 5 pm to go via Orkney while the rest of the week they depart at 7 pm which will give them another couple of hours if they can book one of these dates.

We have tried to get a joiner to come and put a couple of internal doors on the kitchen area, but as with all tradesmen, it will be around 2- 3 months before they can do the work. Hopefully one will come this week to look at the job and give us a price. At least they all phoned back unlike some of the tradesmen in Sheffield who couldn't be bothered.

On Saturday we went down to the Sumburgh Hotel for a meal to celebrate both our 31st wedding anniversary and the fact that we now have the keys to our house.