Rusty McD is back with another 5-minute interview on the subject of furry, feathered or scaly friends in our community!
5 minutes with...
Ollie Cameron, her Guinea Fowl, her husband Angus... and Meg! It is a lovely Friday afternoon when I head in the direction of Lochearnhead to visit Dundhu, home of Ollie and Angus Cameron and family. Ollie was nominated by the lovely Yvonne Spearing from St. Fillans and I am very much looking forward to the visit. Dundhu is a super place with a gorgeous garden and various animals roaming around. On Arrival Ollie and Gus are busy in the garden. Ollie and I go inside and Ollie admits she wasn’t really in the mood for gardening that day but once started was quite enjoying herself. We have a seat at the kitchen table which overlooks a very busy birdfeeder with a variety of birds having a feast. Ollie is a very easy going person and within no time she’s got me talking about all sorts but herself- subjects ranging from food that is in season in the month of May to dogs having pups and other stuff... until Gus arrives in the house to keep us on the straight and narrow - and we start the interview.
The Guineas discuss philosophy
Ollie, how long have you stayed in Lochearnhead?
Too long! Ha-ha, only joking. I love living here and have been here for nearly 23 years now. I married Angus Cameron in 1989. Gus is a born and bred local.
Tell me a bit about yourself.
O: Well, what can I say? I used to teach but now I am a mature student. I study art, media and design in the city of Perth! I do this in between helping Gus with the chalet and cottages. I am also the mother of two teenagers and a “twenteen” year old! I’ve got a scooter, a campervan, various pushbikes - and I am an out-of -work Munro bagger; I am also a gardener and a cook. We like to have friends over and socialise. Oh yes! I’ve done the boat race three times (twice in a girls’ team, once in a mixed team) and a few charity challenges like Rob Roy’s Challenge, The Saddlebags and the Caledonian Challenge. I am also involved in local organisations like the Lochearnhead Games and The Fête - and I have been the treasurer of the Lochearnhead Village hall for 22 years now. Did I mention that I am a part-time actress??!! Well, first time recently - and I loved it.
Ollie - I don’t know how you do it - it makes my life seem so boring! Any funny stories or anecdotes you can tell me?
Well, this one is quite a funny story from a while ago. When Maureen and Ronnie Hamilton still lived at Craobhach, Strathyre, we invited them over for a get-together. At the time we had two dogs, a deerhound called Arnie and a black lab called Rory. Maureen and Ronnie also had a black lab and her name was Purdie. We had a very jolly evening and when it was time to go home, Ronnie opened the boot of the car and Purdie jumped in. Gus and I put Arnie and Rory in their kennel and we went to bed. The next morning we got a phone call from Maureen. She asked us if Rory was alright? We said, yes, Rory is fine, but strangely he had been doing a bit of howling overnight... Maureen told us that something very strange had happened to Purdie. She had been outside in the rain that morning and Maureen decided to dry her with a towel before letting her into the house. But what was that?! Purdie had grown some “tackle” overnight! Turns out that our Rory spent the night in Strathyre, whilst poor old Purdie ended up in a kennel with our deerhound Arnie! We met up with the Hamiltons and exchanged dogs at Kingshouse!
Your Guinea fowl?
Yes! We had some lovely guests from Cornwall in “The Smiddy”. I am not very good at imitating the Cornish accent but they were really lovely people who also had a small holding
Angus feeds the brood
at home and we were comparing animals until they said: “Eh? You don’t have any Guinea fowl?” Soon after they had left we received 12 eggs in the post. Three hatched, of which two were helmeted Guinea fowl – one grey and two white. I actually quickly brushed up my knowledge about Guinea fowl before you arrived(!) and can tell you that there are about ten different colours of Guinea fowl but mine are ‘pearl grey’ and ‘pearl white’. They are called keets up to 8 weeks and after that they turn into Guinea Fowl. Guinea Fowl are native to Africa. They are highly adaptable. Ours go right up to the end of the branches and on windy days you see them whizzing up and down in the wind quite happily. They make the most wonderful sound and chatter all day long. Apparently they have very small brains. I have noticed this as they manage to get into the vegetable patch and run up and down in it but never seem to manage to get out of it again! They also like to admire themselves in hubcaps. Ollie’s Guinea Fowl have decided to go on a wee expedition in the pony field.... We could just about see them in the distance having a great time. Ollie promises to send a photo of her Guinea Fowl to me which was taken in the snow. In the meantime Gus and Meg are happy to pose with Ollie instead. If all is well, Meg will have pups around the 11th April. Ollie and Gus, thank you so much for your hospitality! One final question: who are you going to nominate for next month’s five minutes with? Fiona Leishman and her ferrets! So we are off to Balquhidder next month. Fif - brace yourself!
Angus and Ollie... and friend! 13