After the snow – see snowy pic for context.
April 9, 2013
April 8, 2013
Buy Book1
The Abandoned Sandy Shoe
The ebook is fantastic value. With 186 poems and chinks together with insights into the story behind each piece the Abandoned Sandy Shoe ebook will keep you entertained on many a long flight and holiday. Dip into it each night before hitting the hay or read it from front to back in one long and engrossing session. Comes with illustrations by Carole Daynes and front cover by funkypancake.
Click on the pic to buy the ebook or scroll down for the print version.
Some people prefer their books the good old fashioned way – printed on paper that they can touch and feel and look at on their bookshelves.
This one comes in a neat A5 version with the Abandoned Sandy Shoe on the front cover, the Philosopherontap “Thinker” logo on the back and 45 choice poems and chinks in between.
This is definitely one for the collection and contains classics such as “Jamjar of Apostrophes”, “2nd Poetical Law of Thermodynamics” and “sad music”.
Click on the pic to buy the print version or why not buy them both:)
Check out the recorded live stream of the book launch party below.
Bloke walking along with girlfriend very happy – it must be love
It was one of those little moments that lift you. I was walking along Wragby Road heading to the Morning Star and coming the other way was a couple in their mid twenties. He looked a typical bloke, one of the lads and not out of place on the terraces at Sincil Bank.
As they passed me he said hello with the friendliest of smiles going. He didn’t seem the kind of bloke that would normally do that. It made me smile back and carry on smiling as I left them behind. It’s amazing what love does for you.
Paparazzi surround the Aston Martin Cygnet somewhere in London
It just goes to show how sheltered I am. I’d never heard of the Aston Martin Cygnet. I came across one whilst strolling through London Town on the way from Victoria to Parliament, as one does. That was when I discovered that my mates were paparazzi in waiting. I took a picture of them taking admiring shots of this car. Could fit it in my boot 🙂 .
April 7, 2013
The fridge runner
The extreme sport of fridge running as demonstrated at the Lincoln 10k race. Fridge running is a latter day phenomenon, largely because the refrigerator is a relative new invention in the timeline of the modern era. One hundred years ago, or less, the only means of maintaining food at low temperatures was the simple pantry. This was at least the case for the majority of the population whose gardens were too small to accommodate an ice house.
Whilst the pantry had some benefits, not the least of which was that it was a large walk in store that would be pretty cool (pun intended) in a modern kitchen where space is often at a premium it was totally impractical to carry around on one’s back.
This is where the modern fridge excels. As well as keeping food colder for longer than the pantry, provided the seal is not compromised, it is easier to strap onto your back for the purpose of fridge running. In this scenario the running performance is not compromised by the state of the seal though a mouldy seal is undesirable for cosmetic purposes. The problem is easily overcome by the light application of a proprietary cleansing cream that is easily wiped off leaving the rubber seal as new.
Fridge running is an elite sport with few exponents. To some extent this is due to the immense physical strength and endurance required of its participants but also because it does demand an element of eccentricity that characterised the mad dogs and Englishmen of midday sun fame you have to be a nutter.
There is considerable strategy involved in fridge running. It isn’t just a question of hoiking the fridge on your back and running. The strategy adopted will vary by length of race. Long races conducted in hotter than ideal conditions offer the opportunity to stock the fridge with supplies of chilled liquids (not beer – beer is not recommended for fridge running unless it is for the benefit of supporters positioned along the route or for resale to spectators as part of the commercial opportunity generated by the growing interest in the sport).
Clearly a balance has to be struck between the problems associated with carrying a heavier fridge and the benefits brought to the runner by it’s contents. This is very much an individual judgement and no attempt is made here to define the optimum load set.
I hope you enjoy the video. Please take the opportunity to watch other random Lincoln 10k snippets on my YouTube channel. None are as interesting as this but you might see someone you know:)
Ciao baby…
Road closed
There is no way forward. The road ahead is closed, the way is barred to vehicular traffic. You cannot get through. The barrier is insurmountable and there is a steward stationed there to guard the junction. It is unlikely in the extreme that you would be able to get your car past the barricade.
That isn’t to say that the defences would keep out a marauding attacker, a belligerent invader hell bent on an objective on the other side of the thoroughfare. A brigade of storm-troopers would I’m sure find the obstacle not to be an obstacle, what is actually a piffling plastic moulding to indeed be piffling and no match for a platoon of size thirteen boots stomping forwards with violent aggression, a contemptuous sideways glance the only recognition that there had once been an attempt at a roadblock.
Do not feel that you can treat this as a behavioural role model. The rule of law is there for the benefit of all. It is what makes this country civilised and safe and a thoroughly pleasant place to call home. Be assured that marauders will be kept at bay by the full defensive might of the forces of law and order, themselves no shrinking violets nor pansies blown around in the light prevailing winds of uncertainty.
Stop. The road ahead is closed, until it reopens.
April 6, 2013
Alcatraz by Plumb-it
Sounds like a racehorse doesn’t it? Alcatraz by Plumb-it. Actually this is part of a small parade of shops in Bromborough. When you need a hair cut or some plumbing tape (or a spanner) you can kill two birds with one stone.
Ironically we talk about escaping from Alcatraz. In Bromborough blokes escape to Alcatraz. They pop out with a parting shout over the shoulder saying “just nipping out for a hair cut loov (or plumbing tape or spanner)”. When there they sit in a line waiting for their turn in the chair. Short back and sides and a bit of a trim off the top please. Or number one all over. Whatever suits. Off to the match this afternoon?
Something for the weekend sir?
No birds were killed during the making of this post and no mention was made of holidays.
The jobslist
There is something practical yet sinister about a jobslist. It’s all about control. String-pulling from afar. Whilst I say that it is also true that I won’t do anything if it isn’t written down. This stems from a time where jobs would be fired at me as if from a verbal machine gun. I couldn’t cope. Having finished one job another would appear. It was very dispiriting. A bit like climbing a mountain. You reach one rise only to find there is another ahead of you.
To avoid this scenario I began to insist that the jobs be written down on a list. That way I could gauge the scope of it all and apportion time as appropriate. This worked but I quickly found that having crossed one or two off the list, more jobs would appear. This was no different to the old way when nothing was written down. It was in effect an endless list.
I put a stop to that. No new jobs could be added until every one on the existing list was crossed off. That way a sense of satisfaction could be reached when all the jobs were done. New jobs could go on a new list after a suitable period of recovery. This intermission would also allow me to bask in the glow albeit short that came from completing all the jobs.
So whilst in one sense a jobslist is about one person controlling another it is also a means of control for the person doing the jobs.
no grave but the sea
ear shanty, ritual capstan strain
flag-crack sail hoist rope run
settle fair wind thirst atlantic swell
journey, unknown horizon, hope, doubt, trepidation
lead swinging three sheets
colours nailed yardarm awash
line crossed adrift
sun-scorched deck bleach doldrums
pump weathering tack
Eternal Father foaming deep rock tempest
No roses on a sailor’s grave
On a sailor’s grave there are no roses
On a seaman’s grave there bloom no Edelweiss
The only ornaments are the white gulls
And the many tears a girl is weeping
translation from a German sea shanty
…the sea gods will take their toll – Joseph Conrad
smooth writing
smooth writing, smooth music
experiments in relaxation
spring arrives
ground soaks up heat
coldest of hearts, melted
hands out palms up, eyes closed
The End
Paused at the window of Reader’s Rest on Steep Hill in Lincoln. A poignant moment. Used to love browsing the shelves of this shop. It sold second hand books and it was a real treat spending some kid free time there. When I first heard it was closing I nipped in and picked up a set of Gibbon’s Decline and Fall for forty quid. Bargain. I had meant to pop back and hoover up some editions of the History of England but now it is too late. Ah well. It was worth a moment of quiet reflection. It had been there for thirty one years. Life moves on…
April 5, 2013
Japanese gardens in the sun.
This one is from a trip I made to the japanese gardens in Toowoomba, QLD, Australia.
The botanical gardens there have a few themed areas, my favourite is definitely the Japanese section, I hope this image illustrates why.
Toowoomba is a more regional town in the drier parts of Queensland, they must have a very good watering system as it always looks lovely and green.
April 4, 2013
Sancerre, my home away from my home away from home.
As I have mentioned before I visit France regularly. When I do, my destination is usually Sancerre.
My best friend, who as since passed away, moved there from Australia when we were both teenagers and became a winemaker.
I still visit his family there and always have a good time.
This is my favourite photograph of Sancerre, It makes a good wallpaper for my computer to remind me of the good times.
The ten million piece jigsaw
Imagine this to be a ten million piece jigsaw, the work of a lifetime. You get to the end and find that one piece is missing.You would want to count all the pieces before starting just to avoid that eventuality.
On a further practical note this lawn must be a nightmare to mow.
Photo taken at the caff at Eastham Ferry on Easter Sunday.