The morning began with an interview with Matt Skube from CFRA, and a challenge to Mayor Jim Watson to put on his skates when he officially launches the 2nd Annual Sir John A's Great Canadian Kilt Skate this afternoon. Matt says he's willing to donate money if we'll get the mayor on skates.  His colleague, Christie, says he might be pushing it a bit far to persuade His Worship to don a kilt as well.

Alix used this morning's broadcast to introduce Hamish of the Clan Haggis and his wife Heather to a television audience.  Hamish and Heather recently arrived in Ottawa from Scotland and are the mascots of the Scottish Society of Ottawa.  Alix designed them herself and hand makes them. She and her son are putting final touches on her website where Hamish and Heather will be available for purchase.

The Scottish Society is “warming up” for the major event starting at noon this Saturday, January 16, at the Lansdowne Park Skating Court.  Skaters in kilts and other Scottish regalia are invited to come for hot chocolate and birthday cake.  Mayor Jim Watson is scheduled to officially launch the 2nd Annual Sir John A’s Great Canadian Kilt Skate at 12:30 on Saturday. Other kilt skates this month are planned for Calgary, Montreal, Saskatoon, and Winnipeg.

It began as an annual house party on Riverdale Avenue to mark two birthdays -- Sir John A. Macdonald’s, and mine.

 Last year, it morphed into a full-blown winter festival in five Canadian cities to celebrate the bicentennial of our first Prime Minister. It became one of the opening events of Winterlude 2015.

The momentum is certainly picking up.  We just received a call from CTV Morning Liveand will be on television next Friday at 9:30.  This will be the Ottawa station, but we've asked the producer to do what she can to get the kilt skates in the partner cities interviewed by the local CTV station.

It’s an event both uniquely Canadian and undeniably Scottish. It highlights the joys and challenges of our winters and the legacy of the people who helped build Canada. Sir John A’s Great Canadian Kilt Skate is back for a second year, celebrating our first Prime Minister and our Scottish heritage with bare knees and ice.

“Last year was Macdonald’s bicentennial, and to mark the event, fi

The temperature is dropping to minus 19 in Ottawa tonight.  There is hope yet that the Rideau Canal Skateway will be open for our kilt skate on January 16.  The National Capital Commission that manages the Skateway won't let the public on the ice until it's strong enough to support about 10,000 people. Here's a picture of how the canal looks today, covered in snow.

OTTAWA (January 22, 2015) – On the last Saturday in January, thousands of skaters on open air rinks across Canada will celebrate the 200th anniversary of Sir John A Macdonald – a great Canadian and a great Scot. Macdonald was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in January 1815 and came to Canada with his family as a small boy. He became the prominent architect of Confederation and Canada’s first Prime Minister.

The Scots sure know how to bring in the new year. By my estimate, some 15,000 people showed up at Lansdowne Park last night for the Scottish Society of Ottawa's 4th annual Hogmanay. While most of the music dancing, the eating and scotch-tasting, the story-telling and face-painting took place in the Aberdeen Pavilion and the Horticulture Building, all day long there was a lot of action on the skating rink near Queen Elizabeth Drive.

That's an old riddle that my Scottish grandmother used to tell us every Hogmanay. "Have you seen that man yet?" she'd ask. Those who had figured out would smile knowingly; the rest of us would rack our brains in frustration.

After a long delay, winter has finally hit Ottawa with a blast of snow.  The ploughs are clearing up the streets and, for those of us who have been looking forward to taking to the Rideau Canal Skateway, there's a promise that the ice may be thick enough by January 16 -- the day we plan to celebrate Sir John A. Macdonald's 201st anniversary by skating in our kilts.