Plenty of Nothing

Canada Post Transit Box

Waterfront

Sledding, 1850

Top: Juliette Binoche catches a lift across the Gulf of St-Lawrence in La Veuve de Saint-Pierre (2000). Below: Winter Scene, 1844, from the Coverdale Collection of the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec.

The Battle of Evermorton

On this day Morton rode to the ancient kingdom of Fife to do battle with Raith Rovers. There is no such town as Raith per se, it's Kirkcaldy, Scotland's linoleum capital, though that doesn't stop the locals from embracing the Dark Age Battle of Raith, fought somewhere around there in 596, as their own. I'm convinced Tolkien glommed onto the word wraith because of its echo of the Battle of Raith, though to be fair the word is right there in the dictionary meaning ghost. If Morton are to have a ghost of a chance they need to bring their goal-machines. Rovers have won every one of their matches since July 31, including a League Cup dismantling of hapless Hamilton Academical on Tuesday. If things go on as they are Rovers will replace Hamilton in the Premier. The Accies are dead last and Raith Rovers dead first. (See how I brought that back around? You have to be dead first to be a wraith.)

[Raith Rovers win 1 - 0. Morton slip back to seventh place. Is Kirkcaldy unstoppable?]

Dock Ellis' LSD/Benzedrine No-Hitter

Baseball has the best stories.

Personification of Halifax

Treebeard

Trueman House and Hill

Further Co-operative Insurance Frenzy

Knocked Out Again

Morton travel to Perth today for the second round of the Co-operative Insurance Cup. Perth, setting of Scott's The Fair Maid of Perth, is a genteel former city of 45,000 situated on the banks of the Silv'ry Tay. In medieval times the place was known as St John's Toun, hence the name St Johnstone FC.

St Johnstone currently dwell in the Premier League, but have a long history of relegation, and have never won The Scottish Cup or Scottish League Cup. They did however win the Challenge Cup three years ago. They lost to Aberdeen in Premier League play Saturday. They wear blue. They have a Canadian player, Marcus Haber, a former Vancouver Whitecap, and a Polish fan club.

Can St Johnstone withstand the Morton goal-machines? 

(Photo credit: David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson, c.1845)

[Ach. St Johnstone win 2 - 0. The winning goal was scored by Dobie! The only cup Morton are in contention for now is the Scottish Cup. They play November 20th against ... someone.]

Ghost