Musings from the Merse
Sunday, February 22, 2009
COTLANDS (anag)
Having lived in Scotland for over 12 years Huttonian and the wife decided that it was about time we bought a Scottish newspaper. Not to overdue it, once a week and good riddance to the overblown,overbearing, oversized and overpriced Observer; so Scotland on Sunday it is: a good old fashioned broadsheet and 50 p less than the 'O'
You won't find much Borders news we were warned; no matter, we have the Ber Wick Shire for that. But as it happens one of the main articles in 'Insight' in SoS is mostly centred on one of our select band of Borders'Bloggers-not about her blogging skills but her Scrabble. Apparently the lady in question is the No 1 Woman Scrabble player in the World, if not No One. Full stop (It seems from looking at the rankings that its usually the men who head the lists. Why?)
So if you head along the Whiteadder Valley and come across a women fitting 'Cotlands' (the only allowable anagram of Scotland) onto a board you will likely have discovered the author of Country Strife (See link or go here) and I suggest play her not for money. Not during the credit crunch at any rate.
I fear that Scrabble is not my game given my uncertain spelling and reliance on Spell Check (Irish English) The rules on what words you can legally use are very strict and I am sorry that a term I claim as my own : LOWHEIDYIN is, according to the World No One not eligible -see here for elucidation. But as you can google it it might come into common currency one day. Google 'lowheidyin and not low heid yin btw) and see what comes up ** I am thinking of writing to the Highheidyins or High Heid Yins, to be pedantic, of the World Scrabble Governing Body and asking for a more flexible approach to newly coined nouns.
I hope Country Strife will support me. And I also hope she can confirm that the five letter F word in the image, more or less dead centre of the board-click to enlarge (Thankyou betsymartin of flickr)is not kosher, Scrabble Rules Wise.
** Enough links for one post. Blog Ed)
Labels: lowheidyins, Scrabble, World No One
Comments:
Indeed it is not. You can have S/ ED/ER(S)/ING(S)/OFF(S) (but would need a blank)/WIT(S) as suffixes, and HEAD/MIND as prefixes.
Slightly less likely but still possible are MOTHER and STAR prefixes to ----ER and ----ING...
Slightly less likely but still possible are MOTHER and STAR prefixes to ----ER and ----ING...
Thanks. Lets be charitable and assume she was looking for a term of endearment like Ducky and her tile slipped
This fellow who lives in Coldingham is also good at Scrabble: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/south_of_scotland/7653637.stm
Maybe you can arrange a match.
Maybe you can arrange a match.
# posted by 
: 7:01 PM
: 7:01 PM
I am sure in the high powered but small world of Scrabble the two Borderers will know each other without any need for an external impressario!
idn't know Boyzone could be counted ore even qualified as a noun (let alone a singing group)
# posted by : 7:14 AM
: 7:14 AM
Indeed I know Mr Simmons of Coldingham well and for many years, preceding both of us emigrating to the Scottish Borders. I am currently 2 bottles of wine to the good and leading 9-6 in our latest best of 25 match.
There are several words of 'dubious' worth on the shown board :)
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There are several words of 'dubious' worth on the shown board :)
