Dr. Burns's Muses

Scotland Day Nine

2011-06-19T15:05:00.001-07:00

You know it's a good trip when the last day is the best day. We arose early to work out in the gym. Workout availability has been spotty, with everything from no gym at all to one that would be okay next to LA Fitness. This one is quite adequate. At 8:00, you guessed it, full Scottish breakfast, and then we got ready for church, or kirk, as they say o'er here. We arrived at the Mayfield Salisbury Church in plenty of time for the 10:45 service. This is the church where Ben did his internship in summer of 2002, and the church remembers him well. They welcomed all of us with open arms.

Church over here is much more formal that we're used to in Arizona, even in those AZ churches that have "high church" services. There is the organ, in this case a small pipe organ, I believe. All of the music was either hymns or classical music, and we sang every verse of every song. Their hymnal has only the melody line, and in some of the songs harmony is discouraged by the notation that it is to be in unison. The pastor gave a very well-written, intellectual sermon that I enjoyed. During the service, he dedicated their new altar and pulpit tapestries, done by several of the women in the congregation. The theme was created by a professor of design from the University of Glasgow, and it is modern but blends well with the Victorian furniture to which it was attached.

After the service, we were treated to a "feast" (they don't appear to do "pot lucks") downstairs, and then changed clothes before being dropped off on High Street, near the Edinburgh Castle. We had a glorious five hours of free time, and we used it well. Some of the people took a walking tour with our tour guide, but since Denise and I had been here twice before, we struck out on our own.

High Street is also called the Royal Mile, and runs from the Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood Palace. About a third of the way down from the castle is St. Giles Cathedral, an imposing structure that is, of course, a Church of Scotland (=Presbyterian). A little further down is John Knox's house, the one in which he was born in 1505. He was a Catholic priest, newly ordained, when a cardinal in Edinburgh burned Wiseheart, a messenger from King Henry VIII, at the stake. This angered Knox, who became a sworn enemy of the Catholic church, and he then studied under John Calvin in Geneva. He returned to Scotland and began the Scottish reformation. Mary, Queen of Scots, was reported to have said, "I fear the prayers of John Knox more than all the armies of Europe." Needless to say, they did not agree on much of anything.

After walking and shopping for a couple of hours, we stopped in at a Starbucks near Canongate, and had the first good coffee we've had since arriving in this country. After a brief respite, we walked over and climbed Calton Hill. Without visiting Calton Hill, I don't feel like I've been to Scotland. As hills go, it's not that high, but at its peak are several monuments, and a spectacular view of the city. On the other side we could see the Firth of Forth, the port that serves Edinburgh.

By this time, it was raining, so we returned to High Street, shopped some more, then had dinner in Deacon Brodies Tavern. The pub is named for William Brodie, who was a respectable Deacon of the Cabinetmakers Guild, a wealthy businessman. By night, however, he was quite a party guy, spending a great deal of time in the tavern drinking and gambling. In 1786, he started committing burglaries to pay his gambling debts. He would make a wax impression of the key when he would do work in wealthy clients' homes, then return at night to steal their property. In 1788, he was caught, and was hung on a gallows he had previously designed himself, being a proper carpenter and all.

We had standard pub fare. I had a steak and ale pie, which was amazing but not quite as good as it is in the Rula Bula pub in Tempe. Then, we stopped at a small cafe and Denise ordered a deep-fried Mars bar. I sort of turned up my nose at the idea, but I have to tell you, a deep fried Mars bar is not your mother's Mars bar. I had a couple of bites, and it was almost a religious experience.

At the end of our time, we boarded the coach for our hotel. In the morning, we arise early, and will head for the airport and home. It has been a charmed trip, and we have all enjoyed almost every minute of it. I hope you've had fun reading my travelog. Thanks for humoring me.

Scotland Day Eight

2011-06-18T14:33:00.002-07:00

Yes, we are experiencing tour fatigue. I'm sitting in our hotel in Edinburgh (that's e'-din-bur'uh for you non-Scots), and it's only 9:20 PM. Compared to other evenings, we're turning in extremely early tonight. If it had not been raining all day, it would be brightly sunny out, as sunset is around 10:30. As it is, it's MacBeth-like dreary outside, and we're happy to be inside a nice hotel, warm and dry.

This morning, we arose and had the usual extreme Scottish breakfast. They don't offer haggis every meal, like they did in the islands, but I'm about haggis'd out. Before getting on the bus, Denise and I walked to the St. Andrews Episcopal Church nearby and took pictures. The people over here are serious about their churches, as each one is a wonderful of architecture and history.

Leaving Inverness, we headed south through the Cairngorms National Park. After about an hour, we stopped at a sheep farm near Etteridge, I think. There, we saw an exhibition of the skills of border collies in working sheep. These dogs are amazing. I will try to post a video on Facebook, depending on the speed of the Internet connection. It seemed that they were reading the shepherd's mind, and each individual dog moved like a professional soccer player. The sheep ran almost as if they were marionettes. In addition, the dogs were friendly and affectionate to these strangers who had just gotten off the bus at their farm. Oh, and the shepherd told us about the dogs, and he said "There's only one kind of dog--a border collie. All the rest are cats."

The dogs start their training at 21 days after birth. He brought out five puppies, and handed them out to the group members. I held one for a while, and the little guy warmed my heart. He was a bit stinky, of course. Anyhow, the shepherd showed us how one of the pups, all around 14 days old, would follow his voice and whistling, so a lot of what they do is very instinctual.

The shepherd then sheared one of the sheep, allowing some of the group to have a hand at the shears. He does not use electric shears, as they are more likely to nick the sheep's skin, and he likes to leave a little bit of a coat because it's cold even in summer, here. He said the fastest he had ever sheared a sheep was in one minute. I took my turn, and it really is fascinating how the shears can lift the hair up so that when you close the shears, you can be certain that no skin is between the blades. After he did the shearing, he let the sheep go, and its lamb bleated very soulfully, as it didn't recognize its own mother without her wool. Within about 15 minutes, they had reconciled just fine, but we all became convinced that sheep really are just a dumb as everyone says they are.

After re-boarding the bus, we went south to Edinburgh, skipping a planned stop in Perth and arriving at our hotel around 3 PM. We dropped our luggage and went directly downtown for a quick bus tour of the sights, and then we entered Edinburgh Castle. The oldest part of the castle is St. Margaret's Chapel in the highest part of the grounds. It's a tiny chapel that might seat 15 people if they all sat shoulder-to-shoulder. The chapel was built in the 12th century.

The castle has been taken by invaders several times, but the chapel survived because it was a house of worship. Even though its occupants used it for a while to store gunpowder. There is evidence that Edinburgh, most likely the castle site, was occupied in the 600's by Picts, then named Din Eidyn. In 638, the Angles captured the area, and renamed it Edinburgh. I have been fascinated over and over by the detail and accuracy of the history of this formidable land. Many of the ancient events are recorded not only to the year, but to the exact date, sometimes with the hour the event occurred.

We walked around in the castle proper, and saw the Scottish crown jewels, which are the second oldest in Europe. We also saw the Stone of Scone, also known as the Stone of Destiny. It has been used at the coronation of Scottish kings since the 1200's, and was in London until 1996, when it was returned to Edinburgh. King Edward I, famously the king who defeated William Wallace and ordered his execution, brought the stone to England to humiliate the Scots, and the stone had been there ever since. Since the modern kings are king of Scots and of England, the stone has been used in coronations of English kings all that time.

Our time in the castle was marred only by continual drizzling rain. It's also very windy up there on top of that extinct volcano, so we were just a bit miserable. We took the bus again, to Abbottsford Pub, where we had dinner all together. There was a set menu, but we were able to substitute fish and chips for the main course. My appetizer was "packets of haggis, with onion chutney." Let me tell you something! You might not like the idea of haggis (various meats cooked in a sheep's stomach), when that stuff is baked in small pastries and served with a chili sauce and onion chutney, it is wonderful. The fish and chips were just really good traditional fare, and dessert was "sticky toffee with vanilla ice cream." It was even better than it sounds. Much better.

Tomorrow, we're going to church where Ben did his internship for his seminary degree, and then we'll have free time all afternoon. Should be a ball.

Scotland Day Seven

2011-06-17T15:34:00.000-07:00

This morning, we slept in. I think everyone is feeling a little bit of touring fatigue, so we changed plans and had a free morning. Denise and I took advantage of it to get caught up on emails, read, and have a generally lovely morning in our hotel room. We were able to shop very briefly, then had lunch at that famous old Scottish restaurant, MacDonald's.

Following that, we returned to the hotel and got on the bus headed for Cawdor Castle, MacBeth's home. Yes, there really was a historical MacBeth, and he was apparently a very capable king, ruling for many years. The Cawdor Castle is in perfect condition, and looks as if someone could move back in tomorrow. There are tapestries covering the walls inside that date from the 1600's. The grounds around the castle are a garden that just goes on and on. We saw a hedge maze that was copied from Roman times, but did not have time to get lost in it.

After Cawdor, we went to a dock on the edge of the Ness River, and boarded a boat for a "three-hour" tour. I tried to find a Gilligan hat, but couldn't. It was actually a two-hour tour, ending at Urquehart Castle. Denise and I were here in 2002, but I think we saw more this time. While we were there, a wedding occurred in the castle. The men mostly wore kilts, and the bride had a sleeveless dress that made me shiver just looking at it. Understand, it was maybe 40 degrees outside, so she must have been freezing. It was a beautiful wedding.

Following the boat ride, we rode back to Inverness, where we had a dinner of chicken liver pate with oat cakes and onion chutney (the appetizer); and salmon on a bed of potato with field greens (the main course); and a fruit cup. All of it was wonderful. Afterwards, we repaired to a pub, then to our rooms.

Tomorrow, we will be seeing a sheepdog work, then to Perth and eventually to Edinburgh, our final hotel stay.

Scotland Day Six

2011-06-17T01:13:00.000-07:00

Today was a very long day. We left Uig headed for Armadale, at the south end of Skye. Armadale Castle is located there, with the Clan Donald Centre. This is a more recent castle, built mostly in the 1800's, and it was occupied until fairly recently. The clan decided that the taxes were just too great on the property, so they removed the roof and allowed the structure to be destroyed by the Scottish weather. So all the stone parts are intact, but there are no floors or inner structures. The grounds of the castle, however, are absolutely beautiful. There are very large trees, plants and flowers of every variety, and paths over the 20 acres of gardens.

From there, we traveled by ferry to Malaig, where we boarded the Jacobite train. This is a steam train, the one used in the Harry Potter movies, and it takes passengers on a two-hour ride back to Fort William. The train actually burns coal. Having traveled now on a coal-burner, I can tell you that there are very good reasons trains now use diesel. The noise of the engine (we were in the first car) was not quite deafening, but close.

The biggest problem was the smell of burning coal. Once, we started moving uphill inside a tunnel, and our cabin was filled with steam and smoke. If there had been a lung disease patient on board, they would have had a very hard time. At it was, I was glad I had an inhaler in my bag. We did see the bridge that is famous from the Harry Potter movies, and I got a few pictures by sticking my camera out the window of the door between cars. I'm sure the grandkids will appreciate those.

When we arrived in Fort William, we got on our coach again, and took the 90-minute ride to Inverness. In between naps (it's hard to stay awake on a bus), we saw stunning views of Loch Ness. No monster was in evidence.

We reached our hotel about 6 PM, and after dinner we took a walk downtown, shopping. The shops here stay open until 10 PM, wisely. I found a Scotland jacket that I can use instead of the sweater I've been wearing the whole time. We also got teeshirts for the grandkids, along with other assorted miscellany.

After dropping our booty at the hotel, Denise and I went on a long walk and found the bed and breakfast where we stayed in 2002. It was a lovely walk along the Ness River, which is beautifully landscaped on both sides, and reminds me of the Seine in Paris, in miniature. There are several well-kept churches that look more like cathedrals to my untrained eye, and we walked by the Inverness Castle, which is right across the river from our hotel. We arrived back in the hotel at dusk, which is Scotland is ten minutes before eleven.

Tomorrow, we have free time in the morning, and a tour in the afternoon. We might just sleep in.

Scotland Day Five

2011-06-15T22:43:00.000-07:00

Our view this evening is overlooking Duntulm, the ruin that was the castle of the MacDonalds before their destruction at the battle of Culloden. There's not much left, but the ruin is striking in its beauty, mainly because it overlooks the sea at the northwest end of the Isle of Skye. In the distance, we can see two of the Outer Hebrides islands, Lewis and Uist. We can't see them well, as we are looking into the sunset. It's 10:25 PM.

We started the morning in Fort William, with the customary breakfast, although this morning I went easier than previously, with oatmeal (porridge over here), and eggs Benedict. Hard to believe that that's going easy. We headed west and stopped for a photo opportunity to get pictures of Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland. As noted before, it is majestic and stunningly beautiful. Then, we headed west for the Isle of Skye, stopping to see Ealean Donnan castle. This is a rebuilt castle that has been featured in a number of movies. It is on a small spit of land that is an island when the tide is in, and there is a bridge to the castle, which was a ruin until the 1920's and 30's. An army colonel bought the place and rebuilt it to its original splendor, and it has become a real destination for tourists.

After spending some time in and around the castle, we crossed the bridge to Skye and drove to Portree, the main city of the island. This city is a port there that was important in the past for fishing, but not so much anymore. Now, it's mainly a tourist town. In 2002, Denise and I went there and we remembered seeing a Scottish wedding from a small coffee shop in the town square. Today, we shopped for stuff (various), then boarded the bus and headed for Uig.

At Uig, we visited the Island Life museum, a collection of recreated thatched huts that simulated Scottish life until the 1800's. The museum was a mite underwhelming. We also saw the grave of Flora MacDonald, the lady who helped Bonnie Prince Charlie escape from the British by having him pose as her servant. Following that escapade, she was captured and taken to the Tower of London, then eventually released, living out her life in Scotland, and for a short time in North Carolina. This all happened in the 1700's, but her gravestone was erected in the 1990's. Those Scots have a very long memory.

Our hotel, as I mentioned, overlooks Duntulm, and if you visit my Facebook page, you will see a few pics. We walked up there both before and after dinner, and climbed around the walls. After the second trip, we walked along the beach looking for the seals that are supposed to come in every evening, along with otters. No luck in spotting them, but we got good pictures of people and scenery. I also managed to sink my tennis shoes deep into the boggy mud that surrounds the beach, so we'll need to find a washing machine in Inverness tomorrow.

Scotland Day Four

2011-06-14T16:47:00.000-07:00

Scotland Day Four

We arose late today and had the usual breakfast, specifically more food than any three people can eat. Then, we set out for the ferry ride back to Oben, then on to Glenncoe.

This valley was the site of a massacre that occurred in 1692. The king of England, James II, was attempting to bring the Scottish clans under his dominion. He was also King James VI of Scotland, so he had more reasons than one to make the clans do his bidding. The head of the MacDonald clan delayed in signing the document the other clans had signed, so the king decided to make an example of him. He ordered his troops to Glenncoe, where they stayed with the clan for two weeks, enjoying their hospitality.

Then, the order came and the British platoon slaughtered about 30 of the residents, including women and children. That was the end of the power of the MacDonald clan, and subsequently their lands were forfeited to the king. In later years, descendants of the MacDonalds applied for a return of the lands, but they were always denied. Thomas Dalrymple was the king's advisor who ostensibly gave the order for the massacre, but an inquest proved inconclusive, and no one was ever punished for the treachery.

Now, the valley remains hauntingly beautiful, as you will see in the pics on my Facebook page. We stopped there for a photo shoot, and then went on to Fort William. The "fort" part of its name has long ceased to exist. This city is on the bank of the Nevis river or loch, I'm not sure which, and we are staying in the Nevis Bank Hotel. The town sits right next to the highest mountain in Scotland, which rises higher than 4000 feet. In the past, I tended to scoff at the idea of mountains in the British isles, but this really does qualify. We rode a gondola up to the top, and took more amazing photos. This is a ski area in wintertime, and it looks as if it would be a pretty good one, with more than 2000 feet in vertical elevation to ski.

After the ride, we went to the hotel, a building with very modern architecture and amenities. Our dinner was marvelous. I had sea bass with vegetables and "chorizo," which was really just sausage. I guess they don't expect people like us Zonies, who know real chorizo. Following dinner, several of us walked into town, where Ben bought his third kilt. He looks quite fetching, I must say. Not so much that I want to buy one, however.

Tomorrow, we travel to Uig, on the Isle of Skye.

Scotland Day Three

2011-06-13T23:51:00.000-07:00

As I sit on the bed in our room, I feel like I'm still vibrating. We spent a lot of time on the "coach" today, and let's just say rock and roll has a new meaning for me. After a "full Scottish breakfast," which includes eggs, baked beans, haggis, roasted tomatoes, sausage, bacon, porridge, black pudding (you don't want to know), fruit, fruit juice, tea, and a selection of cold cereals, we boarded our coach and headed toward the western tip of the island, Fiannphort. No, I can't pronounce it, either.

The distance is only about 30 miles. An hour and a half after we left, we arrived at the ferry stop. The road is one-lane, and it is very rough and bouncy. The bus had to stop frequently to pass an oncoming car, or to let an overtaking car pass. Every 1/8 to 1/4 mile, there is a wide spot that will allow vehicles to pass, and we seemed to stop at most of them. Anyhow, we finally arrived about 11:00 and boarded the ferry for the 10-minute ride across to Iona.

Iona was the island where St. Columba arrived in the 563, to establish Christianity on the island. The story is that he arrived with twelve others, and they proceeded to evangelize first Iona and then much of the rest of Scotland. He built an abbey on the eastern shore, which continued to house monks for several hundred years. He died on June 9, 597 in the church, having risen in reputation and power to the point that he "ordained" the king of Dalriada, which included much of Scotland. Many kings of Scotland were buried on Iona, as it was regarded as a holy place. At the abbey, there is a shrine that marks his burial place, supposedly. In the 800's and 900's, others came and started rebuilding the structure, and parts of the current building apparently date back to that time.

In the 1100's, Somerled became "Lord of the Isles," a title that is now held by Prince Charles. His son Reginald brought Benedictine monks and Augustinian nuns to the island. From that time until the Reformation, there was an active abbey and nunnery, which comprise the buildings that are now present.

In the 1500's, the Reformation stopped all that. Abbeys and nunneries became part of either the Church of England or the Church of Scotland. The structures fell into disrepair, and in the 1800's, it was decided that they should be rebuilt. Final rebuilding happened in the 19th and 20th centuries. Now, the site is a monastic-type community in which people from various faiths can come for week-long prayer and meditation visits. Some of what they do sounds pretty far out, but I can see how such time could be life-changing for people seeking a renewal of their faith.

There are several crosses leading up to the abbey, and on the ground of the sanctuary. One dates from the 1500's and is still standing, five centuries later. Others have fallen, and the pieces of those crosses are displayed in the museum. One of them broke immediately after being erected, as the arms were too long, so the sculptors added a circle around the intersection of the cross, which was later copied all over Scotland, and became the cross used now by the Presbyterians.
I don't think there are more than 200 people on the island, and that may be an overestimate. In fact, many who work there live on Mull. As one of them told us, Iona is just one ferry too many from the mainland.

While at the abbey, we had a short service led by Rev. Ben Seller, and it was touching and meaningful. He spoke about the Great Commission, to go into all the world and preach the Gospel, relating that mandate both to St. Columba and to our world today. It was excellent.

In the afternoon, we caught the ferry again and took the bus to Tobermory, the other larger community on the island. The town is known for its distillery, and for its buildings being painted in multicolored hues. It is actually very picturesque. We shopped the main street for an hour or so, before returning to our hotel. While shopping, we stopped in a grocery store, and I bought some potato chips, flavored "Prawn Cocktail." They weren't bad, but I don't think I would order them again. I could have ordered Fried Chicken flavor, among others. Denise got the Pickled Onion ones, but I didn't get to taste any of hers.

Because of the roads and the swaying of the bus, I now know how it must have felt to ride in a stagecoach. I'm hoping my head will stop spinning by tomorrow. Dinner tonight was much better than last night. I had the pickled mackerel appetizer, which was much better than it sounds, followed by the Laird's Pie, made of venison, carrots, mashed potatoes, along with a puff pastry top. Now, I would not usually try venison, but this was amazing, and tasted more like beef than anything else. There was only one bite that had a minimally wild taste, and it was prepared such that it was much more tender and succulent than venison usually is.

Following dinner, we walked down to the bay and skipped stones on the water. Denise picked up shells, as well, which will be coming home with us. After the walk we sat in the hotel lounge and talked until after 10 PM. The sky was still bright enough to read outside when we returned to our room.

Tomorrow, we head north to Fort William, with a side trip to Glencoe.

Scotland Day Two

2011-06-13T00:37:00.001-07:00

Scotland Day Two

I'm sitting in the room at the Isle of Mull Hotel and Spa. It's in Craignure, and our room overlooks the bay. We're drinking tea again. We can't figure out if the tea is actually better here, or if it just tastes better because we're drinking it in Scotland.

We started out this morning near Glasgow, going north. Our guide, Allison, is from Glasgow, and she said there is a 'friendly' rivalry between Glasgow and Edinburgh. Glasgow is sort of a low-brow city of blue collar workers, shipwrights, businesses involved with trade. According to Allison, the Glaswegians say, "You'll have more fun at a Glasgow funeral than at an Edinburgh wedding." I think that captures the essence of the difference between the two largest cities in this country. Also, if there is something that is outstanding or wonderful, in Glasgow it's "pure dead brilliant." That may have just become my favorite phrase.

On our way north, we stopped at the Village of Luss, a tiny touristy way station. We visited a small shop where an old man tottered around inside with a plate of Scottish shortbread for all customers. The village is on Loch Lomond, famous for a poem and song that include the words, "You take the high road and I'll take the low road, and I'll be in Scotland afore ye," written about a pair of friends who were imprisoned. One was to be executed the next day (the low road) and the other was to be set free.

From there we drove to Inverary Castle, home of the Duke of Argyll. This castle is occupied by the current Duke, whose wife is an heir to the Cadbury chocolate empire. The duke is from the Campbell clan, and in fact Argyll was the headquarters of that clan. Since the family name Burns is a sept of the Campbell clan, I guess I was visiting my ancestral home. Didn't see anyone I knew. While we were there, we had lunch in the cafe at the castle, lentil soup and ginger beer. The ginger beer is not to be confused with ginger ale. It is made of fermented ginger root, but has only a negligible amount of alcohol. The closest taste I can think of is Vernor's ginger ale, as it is rather strong and catches in the back of the throat. I probably would not drink it very often.

The castle was built in the 1700's, and it overlooks Loch Fyne. It is furnished in a French provincial style, including tapestries on the walls reminiscent of Versailles. There were pictures everywhere, both of the ancient dukes and duchesses, and modern ones of the current family. They have small children, 3, 5, and 7 as I remember. The duchess acts as 'lady in waiting' whenever the ruling monarch visits. That's sort of an aide who sets up meetings and official dinners.

From Inverary we went north along Loch Awe (pronounced "oh"). It's the longest loch, at 25 miles in length. By now, these lochs are all running together in my head, because I can't really tell much difference between them. They are all fabulously beautiful. Anyway, we arrived in Oben, where we caught a ferry to the Isle of Mull. Oben is picturesque, and with any luck I'll be able to send some pictures. By the way, I sent some this morning (last night to you 'Zonies), to Facebook, so if you want to find me on Facebook, the pics are in an album labeled "Scotland."

Somewhere along the way, before or after the village, we crossed into the highlands. You can tell when that happens, because the signs are suddenly in two languages: English and Gaelic. The Gaelic (pronounced "gallic") in Scotland is very different from Irish Gaelic. It has only 18 letters, and is inscrutable to me.

From Oben we took the ferry to Craignure, the largest town on Mull. Large is a term that should in no way be applied to this place. The term "wee" would fit quite well, in fact. The ferry ride gave us a spectacular view of the islands surrounding the open water between the cities. By the time we left Oben, it was late afternoon, so the land around us seemed shrouded in mist, with a mountainous horizon to the north and east, and rolling green hills to the south and west.

After settling in at the hotel, we had dinner. This one was not a amazing as last night's, but it was still pretty good. Then we took a walk. We left the hotel at a little after 8 PM, in search of the nearest castle, which we understood was about 1.5 miles away. We finally reached the Torosay Castle a little after 9:00, and of course it was closed for business. Like yesterday's castle, it is occupied, so we didn't feel good about jumping the fence and looking around anyhow. I didn't like the idea of spending the night in a Scottish jail. We got back to the hotel a few minutes before 10 PM, having walked at least five miles round trip. So much for their distance estimates. It was still light enough outside to take a picture without flash. It's easy to forget how far north we are until the sun sets after ten.

Tomorrow, we'll be going to the Isle of Iona.

Scotland Day One

2011-06-11T21:25:00.003-07:00

Journal 20110611

I'm sitting in our hotel room, in the Gleddoch House Hotel Golf Club and Spa, drinking tea and eating a shortbread cookie while I write. Life could be worse. It's about 45 degrees outside with a light drizzle, and naturally there are people on the golf course playing anyway. I like Mark Twain's comment that golf is a good walk, spoiled, so I'm not tempted, even here in the home of golf. I must say the courses we've seen are just beautiful. But enough about that.

We left Phoenix yesterday morning at 6:50 AM, and landed in Newark for a 5-hour layover. Can't say I found much to recommend about New Jersey, at least the airport. The flight "over the pond" was uneventful, but sleep eluded me uncharacteristically. Because of that, I missed some of the guide's information about Glasgow because I had to inspect the inner aspect of my eyelids. They're fine.

After dropping our bags at the hotel, our driver, Stevie, took us to the center of Glasgow, where we visited the Glasgow Cathedral. The cathedral building was started in the 1300's, and took about 100 years to complete, with additional wings added over the next couple hundred years. After the Reformation, the church was Presbyterian rather than catholic, and eventually it was turned over to the city of Glasgow. I couldn't tell if they still have church services in there anymore, or not. The structure is smaller and less impressive than Canterbury Cathedral, but it is still amazing to look at. The lower portions are obviously ancient. I'm hoping to post pictures either on Facebook or on my blog, depending on the speed of the Internet.

Alongside the cathedral, there is a museum, the St. Mungo Museum of World Religions. St. Mungo is the patron saint of Glasgow. He died the 600's, and nothing was written about him for another several hundred years, so he's somewhat apocryphal. Anyhow, the church was built on the location of his grave and that of another holy man, Fergus, whose body Mungo brought to Glasgow for burial. If I were a Glasgow native (Glasgowian? Glasgowite?), I would try for a different saint. Mungo sounds like a character in a western movie that would star Clint Eastwood or Charles Bronson. But back to the museum. It is a small museum that celebrates great world religions, including Buddhism, Sikhism, Islam, Hinduism, and so on. The displays are interesting in that they are somewhat random, so you have to pay attention and can be surprised by the juxtaposition of different beliefs.

We went to the O'Connor pub next, and Denise and I split "Chicken Supreme," which is a chicken breast stuffed with haggis, served over mashed potatoes with whiskey gravy. It was amazing, and we were glad we shared. Upon our return to the hotel, Denise and I took a hike that landed us in someone's back yard, sort of. If you can call the rear garden of a Scottish estate a back yard. The rain drizzle was light enough that it just added to the charm of the place.

Our hotel overlooks the Firth of Clyde, which is more or less a long bay or fjord-like area where the River Clyde empties into the ocean. The hotel was built as a manor for a shipping baron, Sir John Lithgow (not the actor). I can't tell how old it is, but I'd be late 1800's. It's on 360 acres of rolling grass (much of it golf course). There was a wedding reception here today, with the men all in kilts. We saw a 3-4 year old boy in a kilt, and I must say he was very cute.

Dinner was in the hotel with our group, and it was fabulous. I may be required to buy an additional seat on the plane if I keep eating like this.

Tomorrow, we're going to the Isle of Mull. Later.

2010-10-25T22:07:00.002-07:00

The times, they are a-changing. My practice is in the process of becoming a different type of practice, with prevention and personal care at its center. That's what I've always tried to do, but I have found a new practice model in which I can really focus on wellness and preventing the complications of illnesses.

MDVIP, a subsidiary of Procter and Gamble, allows physicians to work with a smaller number of patients, as a combination old-style family doc, health coach, and technical medical expert. I will be able to spend the time with each patient, and his or her individual problems, that is necessary to achieve the best results, both for healthy living and for the treatment of illnesses when they occur.

My practice size will decrease to less than 600 patients, from its current 3500-4000. Each patient will have a yearly physical examination that is extremely comprehensive. These are sometimes referred to as "executive physicals," but a better term would be a comprehensive assessment and annual health plan. We will work together to form goals and benchmarks for the coming year, and I will help each person to reach those goals as time passes.

In addition, since the practice is much smaller, visits will be on-time and as long as is needed. Each patient will have my cell number to reach me on evenings and weekends, with instructions to actually use the number when they need to talk to me. I won't be trading call on weekends anymore, so I will be the one to return the calls. Patients can expect to get in for problem visits the day they call, or the next day. One of my goals is for my patients to have no idea what an urgent care center looks like.

There are many other layers to this type of practice. I am very excited about starting. You can learn more about the practice at www.StevenBurnsMD.com.

The change in practice occurs on December 28, 2010. Call if you want to know more about the MDVIP practice.

2010-04-10T00:29:00.003-07:00

Foggy Canyon

From the precipice a fog blanket,
thick and opaque and still and gray,
eclipses the chasm below.

The trail, steep and narrow
limestone path of muley mud,
dives out of sight into the mist,
beckoning.
I follow its blind lead,
blinking in wet air below.
Gray leads into gray,
five, six, eight feet ahead,
canyon grandeur captured in a
small mist box.

Ahead, low mountain sage grows,
its trumpet flower hanging gold in still air.
Hummingbirds hum below the mist
as the sun breaks the canopy wide,
penetrating the canyon.
Morning wakes,
delayed as a lover who stays
for one more caress as he leaves the bed
rejuvenated, vitae interruptus,
resuming life again.

Looking under the cloud, I--
open-mouthed with wonder--
see cliffs and plateaus,
temples and spires,
Kaibab limestone above,
Vishnu schist below,
Rio Colorado below,
sun-broken cloud above,
see them again
as if for the first time.

--by Steven Burns

A New Year, a new half-marathon

2010-01-18T07:14:00.003-07:00

It's a nice, rainy morning, and I love it. I'm glad it wasn't raining yesterday. You see, I ran in the P. F. Chang Rock 'n' Roll half-marathon, and rain would have put a huge hitch in my getalong.

I met with 22,000 of my closest friends at ASU, and we took shuttle buses to the state capitol, 15th Avenue and Jefferson in Phoenix. There, a very large number of people milled around and waited in long lines for Port-a-Johns. A pretty good band was playing near the booths that were handing out bagels, bananas, water, and coffee. Then it was time to get ready to run.

I was in the 13th 'corral,' as we were grouped by the times we planned on finishing. My group consisted of maybe 400-500 people, and I suspect the groups farther back were much larger. At 8:30, we started moving forward, and as we reached the starting line, I saw Senator John McCain waving to the crowd from a platform 20 feet above the crowd. His face must have been hurting by then from all the smiling.

Immediately after crossing the starting line, the group spreads out, all the while jockeying for position. You're not really trying to pass other people--just trying to keep to your own pace, and not step on anyone else. It's sort of like driving on the freeway, but without all the anger and fear.

At 7th Avenue, we turned north and then at McDowell we turned east. I think that whatever 'runner's high' I had occurred before the 3 mile mark, which is 12th Street. By the 6 mile mark, I was in the groove, but my legs were beginning to complain that I was using them badly. Unlike last year, the 7 mile marker was not a discouragement. Last year, I realized that I was only half way there, and that was disappointing. This time, my thought was, "I'm half way there and I'm not dead yet."

At 12 miles, a song came on my iPod that was most timely. "Everlasting God," by Lincoln Brewster, came on with "Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord," and "You lift us up on wings like eagles," and finishing with a child reading Isaiah 40:28-31, which concludes with "...those who wait on the Lord will find new strength. The will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint."

Now THAT's a runner's high.

Crossing the finish line is always a high, and this time, I didn't feel like I had to walk across the line. I stopped as soon as I could, and texted everyone in my family that I was all done. In every way. This year, the organizers had Mylar blankets for the runners, and I was surprised how good it felt to be that warm.

Last night, Denise and Michael and I went to see "The Book of Eli," with Denzel Washington. It's an interesting movie, with some theological overtones. Mostly what Hollywood thinks that Christians believe. Anyhow, I stood up after being seated for quite a while, and I was not sure my legs would hold me up. It's an odd feeling, and I was glad for the handrail in the aisle of the CineCapri.

Today, the thighs are pretty sore. I guess I'll start running again in a week or so, but for now, I'll just bask in the joy of having finished the race, again.

Labor Day Weekend Notes

2009-09-05T14:27:00.002-07:00

It's Saturday in Prescott, and we are sitting here, inside, with rain pouring down. With coffee. It's a good day. I hope that your weekend is as good as mine has been so far.

August has come and gone without a health care reform bill. Mostly, that's a good thing. The bills that have been floating through Congress have been monstrosities, keeping all the bad parts of our current system while adding more bad things on top. The demagoguery on both ends of the political spectrum continues to be nauseating, but then that has not changed for at least my lifetime.

My academy, the American Academy of Family Physicians, supports reform that would insure everyone, but I think most of us remain skeptical about the federal bureaucracy doing a better job than private industry has done. An editorial by Hugh Hewitt points out that everyone is being asked to sacrifice for a better health system, except for one group: Trial lawyers. One of the huge drivers of health care cost is the tort system, and if Congress and the President were serious about decreasing costs and using that money to cover everyone else, they would address the problem of the costs of liability suits in our country.

I suspect we'll see that problem addressed by our legislators right after a flock of pigs fly over the White House. In formation. Going south for the winter.

In the past few weeks, the incoming head of the Canadian Medical Association has written in the press that their system is woefully inadequate, and cannot continue on its current course. You can read the article about her statements at:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5jbjzPEY0Y3bvRD335rGu_Z3KXoQw

She appears in the article to be calling for a private plan alongside the public health system, which I find very interesting. For many years, it has been illegal in Canada for physicians and patients to go outside their public system, so patients have only the American system to get around the waiting times and inefficiencies of their system.

I can't really defend our current system, but when you read in the press about all the bad problems, remember that you need to know the context of the statistics that are used on both sides. Many of them follow the old saw that there are liars, danged liars, and statisticians....

Have a lovely weekend and a marvelous September.

Five More Shopping Months 'Til Christmas...

2009-07-31T23:16:00.002-07:00

The month of July is over, and the various other shoes have not yet dropped. No vote, yet, on health care reform in Washington. The bloviators have started telling us family docs that we're going to make more, and the big bad specialists are going to make less. Translation: We'll make less, and they'll make a lot less.

Our various medical societies are signing onto reform with the illusion that they can help shape the legislation by helping to pass it. If history is a faithful guide, then the politicians will use that support until it is too late to reverse the votes, and will then slice those who help them into tiny bits. We never seem to learn.

I have a reform idea in four parts:

1) Make group insurance illegal. The whole concept of employer-based insurance skews the risk in insurance such that it cannot make sense for the whole populace.

2) Use community pricing. By setting fees and prices for insurance locally, there will be local control and local factors that cannot be managed efficiently from Washington.

3) No refusal for pre-existing conditions. This must be done in order to cover the whole public, but it must be combined with:

4) Mandatory purchase. Everyone must buy insurance, no matter what their situation or reasons for not wanting to do so. This spreads the risk over the whole public, not just those who are healthy enough to buy private insurance.

If my program were adopted, it would require no new government programs, other than using part of the IRS to monitor insurance purchase, and possibly a system to help those who really, really can't afford the insurance. Maybe their 'earned income credit' could go to insurers instead of to the individual, to buy a catastrophic coverage insurance at low cost.

Anyhow, I don't have any illusions that reasonable change will occur. Such is my faith in the United States Congress.

Be well, and stay cool....

Late June Musings

2009-06-21T21:09:00.004-07:00

Several topics, medical and not, come to mind on the evening of Fathers' Day. First, it was a marvelous day that ended with all my kids and grandkids at the house for a cookout and croquet. They have all left, now, and my hearing may return to normal someday soon. I feel truly blessed to have all of them living close, and willing to come over to humor their dad and granddad.

Second, I think the adults in Washington are awakening and realizing that you can't just say, "Shazamm!" and fix the American medical system. George Will wrote a good column that points out many people who don't have insurance get it within six months or so, and that many choose not to buy insurance when they have both the right and the income to do so. In fact, millions who qualify for Medicaid (AHCCCS in Arizona) don't even sign up, when it would cost them nothing for the privilege. The cost for the program that has been advanced by our President is so large that terms used for it (astonomical, astonishing, gigantic, mind-blowing) seem small and inadequate. I'm concerned that the damage to our medical system if it is adopted would be permanent, without any hope of regaining what we have now.

Third, just for fun, the books I'm reading or that I've read recently:

The Omnivore's Dilemma, by Michael Pollan. The author follows industrial food production, along with 'organic' foods of various types, ending with an exercise in hunting and gathering. I found it delightful, and for the first time in my life have purchased some foods labeled 'organic,' with some understanding of what that means.

unChristian: What a New Generation Thinks about Christianity...and Why It Matters by David Kinnaman. This is a wake-up call for anyone who is part of the established church in America, no matter which denomination or lack thereof he or she belongs to.

Why Evolution is True by Jerry Coyne. The author is a professor of evolutionary genetics, and his is a description of the facts supporting evolution. Whether one believes that evolution happens or not, this is a must-read for those who want to be well-informed on the topic. I think we need to still the rhetoric on this subject, which unnecessarily pits scientists against theologians, when the two sides can be so easily reconciled.

An Inconvenient Book by Glenn Beck. Light reading that is somewhat politically incorrect and definitely from the right side of the political spectrum.

ReThink Your Life by Stan Toler. This is a "mind diet" that can lead a person to deeper understanding of him/herself in the spiritual realm.

William Shakespeare, a Compact Documentary Life by Samuel Schoenbaum. This was just loaned to me by a friend, who promised that it was the definitive work on whether Shakespeare really wrote the plays and sonnets attributed to him.

This list does not include any popular popcorn novels currently in my possession, and there may be others I've forgotten. I'm also getting ready to start The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell's first book. I've already read Blink and Outsiders by the same author, and I heartily recommend anything he writes, past or future.

Well, now I'm ready to start another week, so off to the races. Be well.

Insurance and Medicine for the Future

2009-06-06T17:34:00.004-07:00

So far, we don't have much detail about the plans for changing our medical (health care) system. From the liberal side of political discourse, we keep hearing how horrible everything is, and how difficult it will be to make changes, and all of us will have to give up something to make the system work. From the conservative side, we hear how bad socialized medicine will be, that the government-run medical system will be hopelessly expensive and inefficient and that people will die from the reduction in care.

Here's what I know: so far, when the feds say that are going to do something, the result is quite often the opposite of the published purpose, and that they are pretty bad at creating anything of value in our society. When they talk about tinkering with the medical system, I shudder, because they can do so much harm in such a short time. The medical systems in Europe largely act under a socialistic framework, and they make decisions that we in the U. S. find repugnant. For instance, years ago in Great Britain, if a person was over 65 years of age, they could not have cardiac bypass surgery. They were old, the thinking went, and so should go ahead and die. As I understand it, the policy changed eventually, but that sort of mindset would never have made it to the starting point in policy-making for American insurance systems.

I really expect not much to change, because there are powerful forces aligned against such change. Large employers don't want people to be able to get insurance outside their employ, as that lessens their hold on good workers. The insurance industry doesn't want change, as their profits are likely to drop, or they might cease to exist entirely if the feds take over. The pharmaceutical industry does not want change of any sort, because all the plans discussed so far involve reducing cost of medications, and choices of medicines to take. The government is not likely to allow real change because, like it or not, many of the lawmakers owe too much in favors for the support of insurers and drug companies, so even if our president wants change, there will likely be extreme opposition to that change.

If we could just see some real discussions about this without politicians trying to demagogue the issues for their own personal benefit, then I think we could see real change. But we're kept in the dark with pseudofacts and hyperbole, designed to scare people into accepting laws and policies they would never allow if they knew what was really in them. I just hope that we physicians will be able to continue to keep our offices open and to see patients without the feds or insurers getting in the way too much.

More Flu

2009-05-10T14:26:00.004-07:00

A week has passed, and the news about the flu is both reassuring and worrisome. The H1N1 virus appears to be no worse than any other seasonal flu, so the fears about a new "super-flu" have receded. It does not appear that we are back in 1918, when millions worldwide died of a new type of influenza.

However, there are as of today (May 10, 2009) 2254 confirmed cases of H1N1 flu in the United States, and the death toll in Mexico has been raised to 48, according to Reuters. That fits with the toll from a seasonal flu, but if this had been a "super-flu," then mortality would no doubt have been much higher. And with this being a new type of flu, it is a trial run for the real thing if (when) it comes along.

Most authorities think that we are overdue for a severe form of flu, by about 20-30 years. The appearance of severe pandemics of influenza has followed a pattern of one about every 30 years, and our last extreme flu was in 1968, when the Hong Kong flu took 70,000 lives in the U. S. Even that epidemic was not as severe as some others, including the Asian flu in the 1957-8. Much of the decrease in severity may be the result of better medical care, better sanitation, and immunization.

One wag on the radio said that there was concern about the swine flu combining with avian flu, such that pigs would indeed fly....

So, if you think you've got the flu, stay home. Watch daytime TV. That alone will be enough to make you love your job when you return to it.

Swine Flu Notes

2009-05-03T07:12:00.002-07:00

As you might expect, I've been following the news about the swine flu closely. Here's my take on it: What I hear is 10% fact and 90% hysteria. The H1N1 virus is a new strain of flu, and that is pretty scary. We haven't had a completely new type of influenza that is transmissable between humans for many years. If this one turns out to be an extremely severe form of flu, it could be devastating worldwide. It does seem to be spreading rapidly from state to state and country to country. And influenza kills about 30,000 people in the United States every year, even without a new strain of the virus.

However, the hysterical ramblings of poorly-informed journalists may actually do more harm than good. It appears now that the deaths from swine flu in Mexico total about 7, not 150 as originally reported. Closing most public places, as they have done in Mexico, is certainly an over-reaction. Closing schools where cases have occurred, especially elementary schools, may be reasonable. It's hard to get third-graders to wash their hands every time they touch their noses or cough. But let's get real--This is a virus, not a magical curse. If you are reasonably careful, you are unlikely to either acquire or spread this illness.

As far as vaccines, I do not expect a vaccine before fall. Given the disastrous experience in our nation with the last swine flu scare, I hope that our government will take measured, careful steps that follow the same protocols used for flu vaccines now. During the Ford administration, the federal government caused production of a vaccine that was not fully tested, and the result was a seven-fold increase in neurologic complications (Guillain-Barre Syndrome) for a flu that turned out to be a minor problem. In other words, they over-reacted to a virus that never became a pandemic.

I must say, I never expected to hear the President of the United States to be telling people to wash their hands....

Joining the blogging universe

2009-05-02T00:23:00.004-07:00

Becoming part of the blogosphere has been a daunting prospect for me. I don't want to be a boor, or a pedant, too silly or too serious, too personal or too generic, too transparent or too obtuse. But I'm getting too old and cranky to care all that much about others' opinions of me, so I guess I'll just say what I want to say and if you don't like it, you can argue with me or go fly a kite. Come to think of it, flying a kite sounds really fun right now.

I'm intending to include some medical information, largely my opinions on medical topics that may be in the news. I may get onto politics occasionally, as that field impinges on medical matters. I'll probably deflate "alternative medicine" regularly and with feeling. I view "alternative medicine" as an oxymoron, since most of the practices are decidedly nonscientific and anti-medicine.

If you want to comment, please feel free to do so, and I welcome agreement and disagreement alike. If I'm wrong, prove it to me. If you agree with me, tell me why and how it matters to you. Most of all, I hope this will be a fun outlet, and that maybe it will enlighten you, or at least make you think.