Ceud Mìle Fàilte
Thank you for dropping-by, I hope you enjoy your visit. The main content is to be found in the blog, where I discuss everything and anything, but, topics including: photography, nature, technology, food, movies, music, politics, and life in the Highlands of Scotland, make regular appearances.
I commonly write reviews of movies (or films, if you prefer). Some movie reviews are short, others will be discussed in more detail. The scope covered will be mainly mainstream English language movies from the 1930s until the present day.
About me
My name is Iain MacDonald, and I live in the Highlands of Scotland (although I have lived elsewhere in the past). I use Fitheach as my online pseudonym, on this website, on Mastodon, and on Matrix. I am a big fan of Free & Open Source Software, which I use both professionally and at home.
Computing and technology tend to infuse themselves into my other interests, as once you learn some skills in one area it is convenient to use them to solve problems in other spheres.
When not tinkering with computers, I am likely to be found repairing things because living in the countryside you learn to be resourceful.
Of course, man doesn't live by SSH tunnels and kerosene vapour burners alone, so, food, as a subject, makes regular appearances, too.
My latest Life articles
My most recent ramblings can be found in the Life section.
My latest Mastodon posts
Mastodon is a microblogging app that is part of the decentralised web known as The Fediverse. See this article for more details.
Fitheach
Sun, 21 Dec 2025 17:19:10 +0000
I saw a giant, illuminated polar bear Christmas decoration outside someone's house. On the polar bear's back were two penguins.
It upset me, terribly. It is just sooo wrong. Polar bear's only exist in the northern hemisphere and penguins in the southern hemisphere. :-)
Sun, 21 Dec 2025 16:51:20 +0000
I once asked what is better than a bagpiper, the answer being two bagpipers. Torridon went one better by having THREE bagpipers on stage. They were great.
https://mstdn.io/@fitheach/115445615664307830
Sun, 21 Dec 2025 16:46:10 +0000
Great concert last night at the Inverness Leisure centre, with Torridon and Calum MacPhail. Both bands are "local heroes". There was a very enthusiastic audience, with ages ranging from "still at school" to "long since retired". Everyone was dancing about to the upbeat tempos from both bands.
The only disappointment was a shorter set from Torridon (compared to last year), and the lack of an encore (which is usually a cover of " Loch Lomond").
Tue, 16 Dec 2025 11:46:21 +0000
I awoke to discover my 'phone was asking me to allow a reboot to enable new features.
What? I hadn't initiated anything.
Then I noticed an SMS message from EE, my network provider. EE had updated my provisioning to enable 5G, which I get for free. Cool!
Now, I feel compelled to check my 'phone at regular intervals to see if there are *any* 5G cells in my area. 😃
Sat, 13 Dec 2025 09:41:57 +0000
Happy Birthday, Dick Van Dyke.
From someone who didn't quite make the magic 100 yesterday, Stanley Baxter, to the original DVD who is 100 to-day.
Now, just because you've reached a venerable age, and "Mary Poppins" (1964) was released 61 years ago, don't think we've forgotten about that Cockney accent. 😃
Fri, 12 Dec 2025 18:04:52 +0000
RIP Stanley Baxter
(1926-2025)
The giant of Scottish entertainment has died. To me, it seems that the actor, comedian, impressionist and author, has been around forever. Baxter just oozed talent, in all his ventures.
Baxter was a fascinating character for lots of reasons. I was particularly struck by his response when asked why he wasn't knighted: "I once turned down an OBE. They’re not going to give me the big gong.”
Good on you, Stanley.