Hope you don't mind someone from the UK.

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Capt Lightning

Capt Lightning

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Location
Historic Buchan, Scotland
Hi all, there's a similar forum for the UK and Europe, and somehow I kept ending up in this forum instead - must be finger trouble..
Anyway, it looks interesting to see what people of the same vintage as myself - mainly in the US and Australia, I see - are doing.

I spent most of my life in IT, first as a large systems engineer and then in software. I worked mainly in the UK and Europe, but have spent time in the US, mostly in Minnesota and Rhode Island.

Took early retirement and moved to Scotland where I bought an old house (c 1840) and with my wife of 40 years, we've been renovating it.
When we get a chance, we travel, walk in the mointains, work in the garden - and even raise pigs for pork.

house2.jpg This is my house. It's not perfect, but it's mine.
 

Thanks for the welcome. It's a few years since I've been to the U.S. , but I've been in 11 states during various visits. My elder daughter travels to America from time to time, to present papers at international conferences on Education issues. She says her favourite city is Chicago - I've only been to O'Hare International airport en route to Minneapolis!

Just for info.. my part of Scotland is on the N.E. coast. Main industries are farming (mainly barley for making whisky), fishing and of course, Oil. Aberdeen is the third largest city in Scotland with about 230,000 inhabitants. The village where I live only has about 200!

Here's a picture of a smaller village a few miles from me, called Crovie. It has a permenant population of 6! The other houses are now holiday apartments.
Crovie has no roads. Cars have to stop in a parking lot, and use a hand cart to carry goods to the houses!

crovie.jpg
 
A warm welcome to the forum Capt Lightning, glad to have you with us! You're home is lovely, as is the area nearby...nice pictures! :welcome:
 
Welcome aboard, Cap'n. Like your house and love that village. Not to worry about being in the UK as we have a lot of folks from across the Atlantic. The more international we can be the better.
 
Hello, Captain Lightning and Welcome!!! I love your house, and the little village!! Looking forward to hearing more from you!! :welcome:
 
Hello Capn.lightning. Nice pics. I can't help but notice how close those houses are to the water. With climate change, houses that close to the sea are either being washed away or broken down.
 
Every coastline on the planet with the possible exception of Iceland and Anak Krakatoa are being washed away Fern. It's normal coastal erosion due to the relentless power of wind and water, no climate change necessary for that.

Unless you count Atlantis, maybe they were overindustrialized or something..... sorry, I think I may have woken Dbeyat.
 
We pop over there on a regular basis. They have B&Q, Costco, Asda, Maplin and PC World.

We are very near the Royal Military Establishment at Sandhurst.
 
Welcome Captain Lightning, I love the house you are doing up, and I love watching those house renovations shows they have on tv, Homes under the hammer,for instance.
 
Hello and welcome to you, Captain. I am in love with your home and if I were able to afford a trip to Scotland (Scotch/Irish & French ancestors here,) I could only hope to stay in such a lovely place. You are going to love this board and be warned, it's addictive.

I'm totally fascinated by Crovie and got a chuckle at a population of 6. I can't even imagine the challenges of living there permanently, but wow, what a spectacular location and view. Certainly a fabulous get away for those who truly want no interruptions, and so very beautiful.

Glad you're aboard and thx for posting the outstanding pix.
 
Diwundrin said:
Every coastline on the planet with the possible exception of Iceland and Anak Krakatoa are being washed away Fern. It's normal coastal erosion due to the relentless power of wind and water, no climate change necessary for that.

Unless you count Atlantis, maybe they were overindustrialized or something..... sorry, I think I may have woken Dbeyat.
Click to expand...
I can't agree on that. In some cases, yes normal coastal erosion, but in others climate change. Classic case is some sheltered East Coast beaches where erosion has never been a problem, the tide is ebbing so much closer to the homes, all put down to climate change.
  1. Changes in global average sea level. This results from a combination of:
    • ocean water expanding as it becomes warmer and less salty
    • an increase in ocean mass as land-based glaciers and ice sheets melt and contributions from dams, lakes, rivers and groundwater change.
Click to expand...
 
Oh my, I hadn't noticed that road before...how on earth do they navigate it??? :eek: Also, a short walk each day would be more than enough exercise - you have to go uphill to get anywhere!!! :lol: Nevertheless, I love it!!!
 
A little bit of background about the vilage of Crovie (pronounced Crivie in the local dialect). In a shameful episode in Scottish history, in the 18th & 19th. century, many wealthy land owners saw that it was more profitable to keep sheep on their lands, than small rented farms. As a result, the often poor tennant farmers were (often forceably) driven from the land and settled on the coastal fringes of Scotland. Some emigrated to Canada and the USA, but some established fishing villages such as Crovie.

As time progressed, fishing boats got bigger and the small harbours were unable to cope, so the fishing fleets moved to bigger ports like MacDuff and Fraserburgh.
Crovie went into decline and in 1953 a huge storm wrecked the village. Most people left and the houses were sold for as little as £50 ($80). However, a few people felt that Crovie should be preserved as a monument to the people who has lived there and a preservation society was formed.

The village was re-built strictly as it was originally and most of the houses became holiday apartments. It is very popular with visitors from the cities who want to escape the noise and traffic. Note that with no real streets, the houses have addresses which are 1 Crovie, 2 Crovie, 3 Crovie ....... etc. There is a small parking lot where a selection of hand carts are kept. Visitors use there carts to move goods from their cars to the houses!

crovie-450.jpg
 
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