Scottish Roundup

It has been difficult to fit this week’s nominated posts into categories. I like that. You’ve all been so varied this week, so think of this roundup as a Pick ‘n’ Mix stall. No pinching that sneaky extra sweetie as you browse, now!

That Miserable Bastard has a go at the choice of the world’s most miserable cities from what he believes to be a  writer more miserable than he:

“The other day, while browsing through some news reports, I stumbled upon an article entitled ‘World’s rudest cities‘ on MSN news, written by an author named Vivian Song. Wondering which 10 would be chosen and the reasons behind this, I had a little peak in and what I found was pretty much the ramblings of an ignorant woman who ventured slightly on the side of racism.”

Read the full post here.

Caron Muses on breastfeeding.

“When I see a report which undermines breastfeeding, like this one today saying that introducing solids to a baby earlier than the recommended 6 months,  I always look for the connection to the baby food industry. And I have never seen such a study where there is no connection.”

Read the full post here.

The news that Gail Sheridan is to stand for election has Burdz Eye View’s attention.

“During The Trial, while all around me were sympathising with “poor Gail”, I kept stumm.  Hard as it was. I knew, at some point, I’d be writing a blogpost like this, though I had expected to be doing so after Tommy’s sentencing.  Because “poor Gail” nothing. Anyone who saw the footage of Mrs Sheridan immediately after the verdict surely saw what I did.  How could you miss the determined pursing of her lips or the flinty glint in her eyes?  She may be standing by her man but Gail will make sure she gets her share in the process.”

Read the full post here.

Stephen Noon has only been blogging a  week but he’s already come up with an idea to revolutionise voting.

“My own experience of this past week, and knowing the way others in the SNP are using their iPhones or smartphones, has led me to wonder whether Scotland’s election this year could be the UK’s first iPhone election?”

Read the full post here.

The Tucson shooting  is on Jack Deighton’s mind.

“US citizens have a remarkable range of freedoms, not the least of which is that of free speech. They also have the freedom to own and use weapons. Both of these are, I understand, constitutionally guaranteed (or at least people believe they are.) The shooting of Gabrielle Giffords may, however, suggest that these two freedoms may be incompatible.”

Read the full post here.

Dear Scotland links the shooting to violence of a different sort closer to home.

“On Saturday, congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in Tucson, Arizona by an apparently deranged young man.  Giffords is still alive, but among the six people killed was Christina Green, a girl born on the 11th of September 2001 — a girl whose short life began on a day of terror and ended in a moment of terror.  Since the shooting, the US airwaves have been filled by politicians of all persuasions calling for restraint and a reduction in the aggressive rhetoric that is increasingly today’s norm. Someone in Berwick didn’t get the message: after Celtic’s cup game on Sunday, they threw a bottle at the Celtic bus, breaking a window (no-one was hurt).”

Read the full post here.

Ellen tries to be positive in the face of loss:

“Generally, in both blogland and the real world, I try to adopt a position of merciless positivity. I am convinced there is a silver lining under every cloud even if it’s of the what-doesn’t-bust-you.. variety.”

Read the full post here.

Devolution Matters reports form the Scotland Bill Committee:

“Scott and Hughes-Hallett had emphasised in their written evidence and opening statement that they were concerned only with the bill, not with fiscal autonomy, in their evidence, but this was overlooked by the committee.  The resulting session was clearly highly acrimonious.”

Read the full post here.

The etiquette of space sharing is on Science is the Answer’s mind this week. A post that would be at home on the excellent “Passive Aggressive Notes” website.

“In a shared house notes are often left to pass on information, claim ownership or discourage others from eating your food (see I Lick My Cheese, a brilliant book). In a communal lab, notes are also left to offer instructions as to how the lab should run, pass on info, claim ownership and discourage others from nicking your stuff.”

Read the full post here.

Talking of sharing. When is it time to stop writing about your children without their consent? MisssyM loses one of her muses:

“The day is going to come, sooner than you think, where you will not be able to write about your kids. And sadly it is the point at which they start doing the most bloggable stuff- the teenage years. You can pretty much time it- they will no longer let you write about them as soon as you catch them spraying on deodorant or voluntarily brushing their hair. The day you hear them running a bath for themselves is the day you need to look elsewhere for material.”

Read the full post here.

Pining for the West draws a comparison between Narnia, harsh winters and Tory victory. It’s a convincing argument!

“I caught the back end of one of the Narnia episodes which were on TV during the Christmas holidays, it was the wicked queen doing her stuff. We used to be steeped in Narnia here as Gordon my youngest son was obsessed with the books and videos at one point. It always reminded me of the winters of 1979/80/81 which were terribly cold, worse than anything that I had ever experienced before. When we moved down to Essex the diesel in the removal lorry’s tank froze and the men had to light a fire underneath it to thaw it out, scary stuff. This all coincided with the Conservative party getting into power…”

Read the full post here.

Mike Ritchie’s not keen on buzzwords:

“Apologies for being pedantic, but the “buzzwords” topic should really have been about ridding the world – pronto – of annoying and meaningless phrases or terms that people in business, mainly, have latched on to and use, remorselessly, thinking they sound authoritative, smart or contemporary.”

Read the full post here.

Now for some Photo Blogging and snapshots of Scottish everyday life this week…

Jade’s photos this week are a heady mix of Snow, Innoculations and Going Green

And the Blipfoto blogs of the week are:

DaisyGlaisy’s shot of the Inverurie Youth Orchestra’s first show of 2011

Jelly Cat’s beautiful portrait of her friend’s daughter

David’s shot of Vancouver from “the other side”

In My Life’s view of Bennachie as the snow melts

HollyJuneSmith’s leaving do.

MeesterFeature’s shot of his mandolin player having a rest in the studio.

Day of the Tripods shot of the Australian Classic Rock Show in Aberdeen’s Music Hall

That’s all for this week. Happy blogging.

Editor’s note: There really were a lot of nominations this week, which is great. However,  some of you may be wondering why your blog didn’t make it. I apologise, there were a lot of nominations but a lot of people only sent us in their blog URL and did not nominate an actual post. So I had to be selective. When it came to deciding which posts went in I decided not to trawl through a week’s worth of entries from those who had just nominated their blog wholesale and concentrated on actual post nominations. Editing the Roundup is very time consuming for the volunteers, so make it easy for them and make sure your nomination actually has a chance of going in by nominating an actual post, and not just recommending a full blog. It also means we don’t pick one of your weaker posts and ignore your best ones that you’d rather have in the spotlight. I hope you understand and please nominate a single post for next week and we’ll be sure to include it.

Gillian