Here we are at Week 574.
I can’t believe that the first week in March is already now over.
Idiot gardeners are outside tiding up. They’re wasting their time. March is a sneaky bastard of a month. You think the weather will get better but it doesn’t. Rest assured we will be in for gales and snow. Twice I spun my car off the road and both times it was in March.
This could be a coincidence but both Bieber and that moaning git Chris Martin were born at the beginning of March! As I said, it’s a bastard of a month!!
This may not be very popular but I must tell you of my hatred of a certain well loved programme.
I don’t watch it but Gwen does. So when I’m working on the site, reading my paper or trying to sleep I hear it.
…And that’s the problem.
…I can’t stand that perfect BBC English way of talking and sodding Bridgerton attacks and assaults my ears!
The characters are all bad enough but Julie Andrews narration is a step too far. I hate period dramas. All the pomp and circumstance runs me cold. The privilege of those folks of that time is pretty disgusting and shouldn’t be celebrated.
I have another gripe about it, the music. How many bloody violins did they use in the making of that programme??
There’s only one word that should be annunciated in that BBC manner and that is the word ‘Evil’.
If you think on Vincent Price saying it at the beginning of ‘Thriller’, Peter Cushing using it to describe ‘Dracula’ or Laurence Olivier mentioning it when he came off the phone to Gregory Peck in ‘The Boys From Brazil’, that is when it sounds correct. To be fair, Olivier was playing an Eastern European and his accent wasn’t that great!
Talking about Evil, the world is a tad more dangerous due to those who run it being murdering, oppressing, perverted, profit seeking bastards. I’ve never worried about the world blowing up as I wonder how all the cunts that have the means to survive will get on with each other? Epstein will probably come out of hiding and buy his way into leadership!
It’ll be a relief though, that RandyandyPaedoPandy won’t be saved, not after his upcoming crash in Paris. He’s tried to hand in his passport but king chic has insisted that he keep it!
Just before I do the weekly reviews, I just read that it’ll be the anniversary of the great and much missed John Candy’s death on the 4th March. I thought it might be fitting to show a brilliant trailer of a superbly mad film. (Check out the expression on the horse’s face!!)
Okay onto this week’s stories.
We had a newbie, a returner and two well established writers. Oh and me at the end of the week.
As always our initial comments follow.
First up with his fourth story for the site was Hector Hernandez with, ‘CF58’.
‘This was really quite interesting.’
‘The detail within was very impressive.’
‘It’s obvious that Hector spent a lot of time thinking this through.’
Mark Czanik was our only new writer this week. We hope that he has fun on the site and that he continues to send us his work.
‘A Builder’s Tan’ was published on Tuesday.
‘This built and kept getting better.’
‘For this type of story this was a cut above all the others.’
‘It was realistic with the hate and the following.’
Christopher Ananais broke the back of the week. Not only was he published for the sixteenth time, an impressive score indeed, he regularly comments, giving the writers encouragement and support.
‘A Thousand Vultures’ was his latest story.
‘Wonderfully weird!’
‘This was as scary as hell!’
‘They wouldn’t have shown this on ‘Wagon Train.’
Bud Pharo returned for the second time with, ‘Seasonal Angst: High Drama In The Diorama.’
Bud is a tenacious and courteous writer who we’re delighted to see back on the site.
‘This had a strange sort of charm.’
‘There was a lot of good stuff throughout.’
‘Might be a case of defective parenting.’
And we finished off with me and ‘Godfather JoJo’.
I try not to be influenced by any stories or writers, however, this one was inspired by an old fable.
I have a love of Grimms and they wrote a story entitled, ‘Godfather Death.’ I think I read it about thirty years back and I always wanted to do something with it. It took me all these years before an idea began to whisper in my ear!
That’s us for another week.
This is maybe a bit of good news, we are now running at a three month wait for your stories to be published. It has came down from around five.
This has nothing to do with the amount of submissions, they are still dropping into our mail box. But to be brutally honest we have been inundated with a lot of stories that are, for one reason or another, unsuitable. This happens every now and again, especially if there are a lot of new writers submitting – They need a few more stories to hone their craft.
Just before a piece of music, I did hear a bit of good news this week. That fiend Huntley who killed those two wee girls, Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells was attacked in prison. If you don’t know the case, look it up, I can guarantee you will hate that thing that calls itself a human. Seemingly he was hit over the head fifteen times with an iron bar. I want to believe that the prison staff decided that they couldn’t leave it any later! Maybe if there was just one more hit then the cunt wouldn’t be still alive.
What I worry about, is, if he does survive, then knowing our pathetic justice system, he may get compensation and the closest Prison Officer to him will be sacked!!!!
One thing that would make all the pervs, paedos, rapists and abusers think is simply this…No segregation, put them all in General Population.
I have so many songs lying about as suggestions, it’s a nightmare to pick one. But Leila mentioned ‘Joey’ by ‘Concrete Blonde’ and that made me think on my favourite song of theirs.
Image by Myriams-Fotos from Pixabay – A yellow crocus pushing up through the snow.
literally stories 
Hugh
First rate post! Damn, fifteen smacks to the head and he still lived. You need the guy who beat Dahmer to death with a mop handle! There should be the death penalty for certain crimes, such as Huntley’s. Or you give “it” ( I agree with that) a choice: “Gotta choice: We hang you or release you into G-pop after we tell the very bad kids about you and on a day when all the guards are out sick.”
Unfamiliar with the program, but I do not think I will seek it out.
Concrete Blonde a great under-loved band. Joey was about the singer’s boyfriend who eventually drink himself to death before seeing thirty (that makes some doing). Then Tomorrow Wendy is about a friend of the songwriter who was an HIV positive addict who decided to hot shot enough heroin to do the job, figuring waiting for AIDS to kill her was not worth it.
I remember the song you chose–it describes real life in a West coast city well!
Leila
LikeLike
Hi Leila,
I first became aware of ‘Concrete Blonde’ whilst trying to find a copy of ‘Everybody Knows’ by Leonard Cohen. They do a brilliant version but Cohen’s accapella version is something to behold.
The ‘Still In Hollywood’ album is excellent.
As per your next comment, I saw on the news that Huntley was dead, I don’t think many will shed any tears. Hope this gives the families of those wee girls a bit of closure…It’s weird though, sometimes having someone living to hate is easier on you!
Thanks as always.
Hugh
LikeLike
I’m back with a second comment.
Huntley is dead. Good riddance. But it doesn’t change anything. I guess removing him from the public teat is a small benefit. I see his killer was a three time killer–make that four. What can they do to him? No dessert for a month? Hell, I’d contribute to his canteen fund for the effort.
Leila
Forget it. His killers is also a piece of shit.
LikeLike
Hi Hugh
The Ides of March are upon us. Comes in like a lion and leaves like a lamb or the other way around.
It is rainy and foggy, here in the Midwest USA.
Good deal on the publishing schedule, and not good if some of the writing isn’t up to snuff. In a way it’s a compliment to us writers LS selects for publishing if others aren’t cutting it. I probably shouldn’t be that way, but writing is highly competitive.
Karma took Huntley for a ride, probably attacked by another louse just a notch above Huntley (hard not to be), so he can play Big Man on Campus. lol. Good riddance either way.
Excellent as always–another thought provoking post!
Christopher
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Christopher,
You are spot on about the kudos to our writers due to us being selective.
The site myself, Nik and Diane ‘met’ on was one where they accepted everything. To begin with, this was good for the ego but when you read some of the stories, you wondered if you were any better or any worse.
I see Huntley did eventually die. Maybe Hell will be that wee bit warmer today!!!
Thanks as always my fine friend, much appreciated!
Hugh
LikeLike
Good post and roundup. I’d never heard of Concrete Blonde (my musical development was arrested in the early Seventies) so I’m glad you highlighted them. John Candy was a special talent. We’ve been watching scenes from the Blues Brothers movie, which he was in. Speaking of Jake and Elwood, their SNL performance of Soul Man is a classic.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Dave,
I was a bit later with music – I began to ignore it in 1986, just before MARRS released ‘Pump Up The Volume’ in 1987, that really finished it for me!
I thought Candy was brilliant in ‘JFK’ and another daft film, ‘Uncle Buck’ was very funny.
I reckon ‘The Blues Brothers’ will always be enjoyed.
Thanks so much and I hope life is being good to you all.
Hugh
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hugh
THANKS for this song, “Side Of The Road.” GREAT SONG! Great singing, great lyrics, great instrumentation, great atmospherics, great characterization/s, great realism, great heart and great tone, too. And the picture that comes with it is wonderful. That guy knows how to live, whoever he is!
“Side Of The Road” reminds me of a line by D.H. Lawrence:
“I weep like a child for the past.”
Great job deconstructing (attacking) that TV program, too! I share your nausea and disgust at all such distracting spectacles and shallow celebrations of arbitrary wealth and power (big time). It is true that absolute power corrupts absolutely (except in the cases of Marcus Aurelius and Abraham Lincoln (and a few others)).
Dale
PS
“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” – Marcus Aurelius
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Dale,
I also despise those ‘Million Pound House’ and ‘Extravagant Weddings’type things. (I saw one article in the paper that’s headline was about some property tycoons daughter getting married, it read – The 548 Million Pound Wedding…Maybe it’s jealousy or maybe that figure really is obscene!!!
There was a line in ‘Only Fools And Horses’ where one of the brothers was explaining about a guy he knew from school. He went into detail and told that everything that the fellow touched became a success and he was now rolling in it. The observation made was ‘Thanks for that, the parable of the lucky git!’
Glad you enjoyed ‘Concrete Blonde’ as Leila has said, they are a very underrated band.
Thanks as always my fine friend, your time and comments are always appreciated!!
Hugh
LikeLike
I have to say I have never watched Bridgerton, those things are no longer to my taste. Back in the day I used to watch Upstairs, Downstairs but I was a wee child and it was my dad’s tele 🙂 I enjoy listening to all sorts of accents and even the received pronunciation – Stephen Fry type I think is okay, but the BBC have gone so far with ‘inclusivity’ that sometimes the news reporters on the news are impossible to understand. We steer clear of reality TV totally partly because it is exploitation and partly because mostly it’s anything but reality. Great post as always Hugh. Thanks – dd
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Diane,
That’s a fair point about inclusivity! But as usual, instead of finding a mid ground, much of society goes from one extreme to another.
I never really watched ‘Upstairs, Downstairs’ but I knew who Gordon Jackson was. I was a bit worried when he was cast in the TV series, ‘The Professionals’
But to be fair he did a great job!
Thanks as always for all your help!
Will need a huge favour from your compatriots next week when England plays France!!!!
Hugh
LikeLike
In absolute agreement on period dramas – I also struggle with the classics from that time and have never read many of them as it leaves me so cold.
Great week of stories too – it’s good to be back and catching up a bit.
LikeLike
Thanks for that Paul. There was a time when I felt that maybe I was being stupid for not ploughing through some ‘Classics’ but I realised that there are so many books out there that I should read what I enjoy!
All the very best my fine friend.
Hugh
LikeLike