Must report that I've begun taking bagpipe lessons! The idea of actually playing the great Highland pipe may have occurred to me in my youth; but, to my knowledge, learning how didn't become practical around here till the past few years. The current arrangement is practically free. One curious detail: I find myself studying alongside my third-grade (think mid-1960s) teacher. Presently it's unclear when I'll get hold of a full set; for the time being we're sticking to the practice chanter.

Disclaimer: while I may tend to think it's the most interesting part, Highland ancestry accounts for only a modest fraction of my family tree. I might be considered a generic example of a Nordic, that being an official name for the curiously & variously colored local race historically inhabiting the northern side of West Asia (commonly if quaintly known as Europe) before spreading around the globe. Among my forbears were Sutherlands of Caithness who joined the Black Watch regiment during the United Colonies' rebellion & wound up settling in what became New Brunswick.