Other December activities
Posted on 31 Dec, 2010 by Lynne Walker | Filed under Blog • General
The diary in December soon filled up with a variety of things. Christmas cards were late being sent - again!
Interviews
The Scottish Orienteering Professional Officer interviews had been postponed from the end of November to 3rd December due to the huge dump of snow the Central Belt had. They were also moved to Glasgow which suited me better as I could then get there by public transport. It was an interesting experience and gave me the chance to reflect – from the other side of the table – about my interview the previous week for a National Trainer.
In the middle of December there were interviews at Stamash in Oban for a Senior Instructor and a seasonal Instructor. This involved a fair bit of work as each application was scored on a two page sheet and then a short-leet drawn up. The Senior Instructor interviews were a two day process. The first day was to let the candidates see the set-up of the organisation; go for an informal walk and to socialise over a meal. The second day was the formal interviews for the Senior Instructor. This was a long day and then there was a Board meeting in Inveraray that evening, followed by a social meal at The George Hotel.
The next day was the Instructor interviews, so back around the conference table for these. The hard part is making the decision, trying to ensure that the very best candidate is given the offer of the post. After much agonising the decisions were made and Niall was left to contact people. A quick shop at Tescos and down the road to Dunoon.
The snow arrives again
It was a good thing that I returned from Oban on the Friday evening as the snow began on Saturday morning. Large fluffy flakes fell and fell and fell all day. There was a bit of wind so it drifted between the car and the garage. We walked everywhere for a couple of days, putting rucksacks on the do the shopping in Dunoon. We then decided that it was not going to go away as the temperature was cold, down to -5C all day which is very cold for here. Paul brushed it off the drive – it was too fluffy to shovel. I cleared Jim’s driveway and part of the road, breaking the broom handle in the process. The snow was on the beach down to the high water mark which shows how cold it was. Unlike many parts of the country, things did not grind to a halt here. The supermarkets had good stocks of food, post arrived and parcels posted here were delivered in a few days to just north of London.
We did not move far for a few days until we thought that the roads were clear and the laybys might allow vehicles to get off the road. I went round to Ardentinny to see David & Bell on the Wednesday. The road was OK and all drivers were taking things with caution. On Christmas Eve we drove to Inverchapel and were able to get off the road and go for a 40 minute run. It was hard work as the snow was mainly untrodden and soft so your feet slipped slightly with each step. The exercise effort was rewarded with cake and coffee at the Benmore tearoom.
The festive season was quiet
I was very glad that we had bought some ‘grippers’ to fit over shoes when on icy pavements – the Christmas leg of lamb might not have made it to Jim’s without them! We had a visit to Glasgow between Christmas and New Year, buying a few things, looking at ski helmets and seeing a film ‘The Way Back’. The city was quiet but that might have been because we were there in the morning.
Just before New Year the thaw arrived, temperatures rose very rapidly and the snow disappeared. We did not have the floods many other places had but the ground was quite squelchy on the top. We also escaped burst pipes although there was very low water pressure on a couple of days due to a burst main further down the hill. We went for some runs, tried not to eat too much, despaired about the lack of decent TV, sorted out a few things in the house.
I am a level 4 orienteering coach and a qualified Assessor & Coach Educator. I have been orienteering for xx years and have coached on many foreign tours.