The Dating Game

I appear to have developed a new interest this past year.

It all began on my birthday when a chance remark led me to understand that someone else on Coll was celebrating their birthday too that day. I was already aware that by happy co-incidence there were one or two other double birthdays on the island, not an unusual occurrence even for a small community. However I have since discovered that there are far more shared birthdays here on Coll than one would have imagined.

Now you may wonder at this point by what means I have collected this information and the following ideas may spring to mind. Have I been loitering by Frank's van bobbing up and down to peer over his shoulder for evidence of rubber banded bundles of cards. Maybe I've been leaning against shop doorways pretending to read the Oban Times lying in wait for a card buying customer with a casual, 'Oh who's the card for then?' Perhaps I've been practising open confrontation like, 'when's your birthday?' armed with a calendar in one hand and pen in the other scribbling with uncontained glee if the date matches up to another's.

Well no, I've just steadily registered dates as and when they came up and the results so far are, not only do we have several double birthdays but amazingly triples!!! A triple in January and two triples in February. It appears that for every month of the year except April there is at least one double birthday. March has three! These events are not just confined to adults either as there are two shared birthdays amongst the children and that doesn't include our two sets of twins!

The list is not yet complete so maybe this is just the tip of the iceberg but once the final count is reached what next? As my imagination runs on and those who know me well, know how it can run on, several thoughts occur to me.

Maybe I will become an obsessive Birthday Bagger and start on Tiree or Mull. With all this information I could become a professional 'Birthday Card Sender' operating from a tiny balloon festooned shed on the Middle Pier. I might start on the unsuspecting tourists, hanging around the pier making a nuisance of myself flagging down cars as they drive off the boat with demands of dates of birth.

Astonished visiors would reply as I was dragged away from their car windows by embarrassed Cal Mac officials.

To conclude, for such a small population and with three hundred and sixty five days to choose from it does all seem a little strange.

CE