Scottish word, +

[GSCole]

In a recently completed visit to the mainland of Orkney, someone gave me
a term that seems to have several meanings.  The word is ferrylouper.
As we were leaving the island, I picked up a copy of a local paper that
contained an article titled:  The Ferrylouper, A short story by Laura
Barnett.  In _The Orcadian_ (Kirkwall), 25 May 2000, page 19.

The word is mentioned at the following website:
http://www.landscaperesearch.org.uk/graphics/extra25/webster.htm

Aaron and others with more knowledge are expected to correct any errors
in my comments.  One person on Orkney used ferrylouper to refer to
English, in particular, who came to the island, bought property, and
stayed for about a year, before being driven out by the climatic
conditions.  He noted that you could often spot where such folk lived
because, typically, they painted their houses chalk white.  So, he might
point to a particularly white house, and say 'ferrylouper'.  Others used
the term to refer to any outsiders who stayed for a while.  One person
said that in the islands further north, it was used to refer even to the
typical resident of mainland Orkney, in the sense of being an outsider.
I encountered English visitors who claimed to have no knowledge of the
term.

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Before leaving the states, at BWI, I heard a dispatcher ask a shuttle
bus driver 'how is your hardball?'  The driver replied 'not good; a lot
of these people (the passengers) are from the long-term (parking) lot'.
Next to the driver was a tip box, containing only a few bills.  My
presumption was that hardball referred to tips.  Corrections
appreciated.

George S. Cole   gscole at ark.ship.edu
Shippensburg University