Donald MacDonald from the Isle of Skye (or maybe it was Neil McNell from Barra, but anyway..) went to study at an English university and was living in the hall of residence with all the other students there. After he had been there a month, his mother came to visit him (no doubt carrying reinforcements of tatties, salt herring, oatmeal and whisky).“And how do you find the English students, Donald?“ she asked. „Mother,“ he replied, „they’re such terrible, noisy people. The one on that side keeps banging his head on the wall and won’t stop. The one on the other side screams and screams all night.““Oh Donald! How do you manage to put up with these awful noisy English neighbours?““Mother, I do nothing. I just ignore them. I just stay here quietly, playing my bagpipes.“
