I am not a cynical luddite, but I believe everyone ought to have a little oldfashionedness in her for the sake of maintaining a soul. Still, progress isn’t completely evil. It brings more good than bad in medicine (at least it does when you compare modern TB and smallpox statistics to the way things were a hundred years ago). But I’m also convinced that as an animal, one whose evolution is influenced by long-term realities, we are not wholly prepared to accept sudden changes. Moreover, being small we are overwhelmed by reasons to feel worthless and dumb; and when it becomes clear that a ten-year-old can do more with our phones than we can, let’s just say it is not good for the self esteem. (Then again I can drive a stick and parallel park without an AI, so there you little Weaselings!)
For at least 99% of human history we lived the same way. It was hard to win a living from the soil and when we managed to light a fire with rocks and damp kindling and somehow outlasted another winter we felt like whatever the word for rock star was way back in the Middle Ages.
It was a cold day in the Tonopah Basin. Ground temperatures hovered near freezing. Even seasoned Nevadans found such days eerie; frightening almost. The sun still arced through the sky, the desert looked as it did on the days it was baked, but William Navarro’s breath had condensed during his last refueling stop. It was as if the air had been shifted one world over, destabilizing the familiarity of the landscapes through nothing more than a drop in temperature.
Forget George and Martha, Bill and Hillary and even JFK and Jackie–and although Eleanor Roosevelt was a winner, there was a tremendous distance between her and FDR that was probably enhanced by policies rather than feeling. No, for me the most interesting relationship between a husband and wife who at one time occupied the White House was that of John (1735-1826) and Abigail Adams (1744-1818). They were married for fifty-four years (when such lengthy unions were common amongst people who managed to live long), and through their correspondences (which were required due to John having to serve the nation from afar) the reader is able to admire a loving relationship between two opposite personalities who met correctly on higher thoughts and had the admirable ability to like each other.
I was interrupted typing this as ‘Zulu’ came on the TV. It made me wonder what were the films that I’ve watched the most times. (A nod to Leila with a list!)
Off the top of my head and ignoring, ‘Carry On’ films which would win hands down (Especially, ‘Follow That Camel’, ‘Cowboy’, ‘Cleo’ and ‘Up The Jungle’) I thought of-
Zulu
The Count Of Monte Cristo.
Jaws.
The Poseidon Adventure.
Young Frankenstein.
Once Upon A Time In America.
Who Dares Wins.
The Towering Inferno.
Con Air.
A Night To Remember.
Expendables.
Wedding Belles.
The Omen.
Love, Honour And Obey.
White Heat.
…And I need to mention, ‘The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare’ as I know that will become weel watched!!
I’d be very interested to read your well watched films. Unless, that is, any have Tom Hanks or weeee Tom Cruise in them!!
I want to start with this posting by mentioning this Artemis shite. Our world is in turmoil. We have people being displaced through no fault of their own. There’s famine, destruction, shortage of water, disease, depravation, energy shortage, increasing energy costs and so much death.
…And what do the powers that be think a good way to spend NINETY THREE BILLION DOLLARS on??
…They wisely don’t think that they should use that money on famine, destruction, shortage of water, disease, depravation, energy shortage, increasing energy costs and so much death, no, they think it’s a cracking idea to have a jolly around the moon!!
What really bugs me is this. Since the waste of money was a success, what difference has it made to the plight of the good folks effected by all that I’ve previously mentioned – Fucking nothing!!
If the waste of money blew up at lift off, what difference would it have made to the plight of the good folks effected by all that I’ve previously mentioned – Fucking none!!!
Mind you…At least those astronauts friends would have been spared from ‘When I was in space’ shite-talk every time the fuckers opened their mouths!!
There was never a truer thing said when it was stated that they looked down on our world!!!
This is the first time I’ve ever said this but I hope it was all an AI hoax and some wee lackey has pocketed the fucking money. At least one person would be having a good time on it!!
I had a look and according to what I could see, seemingly, rocket fuel doesn’t do that much damage to the ozone. (If you believe what we’re told) This has to be true!! A mere seven hundred thousand tonnes of rocket fuel can only enhance the planet!! Not like a skoosh of deodorant or a cow’s flatulence!
Another plus – I hope wee Greta had a sob!!! To me this is the first time that she’d have had a point!
This quote wasn’t for this complete arrogance of ignoring their fellow man, but I think it’s appropriate:
*‘Scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn’t stop to think if they should.’
All that money could have saved so many lives. Shame on all involved and all the fuckwits who cheered!!!
…The only thing that’s more expensive and more pointless is a war!
*Anyone know where the quote came from?
This song shouldn’t, but will always be ignored!
Talking about AI, we’ve had an issue here in Scotland with school weans. (Pronounced Wayne’s meaning children)
The wee delights have been using software and pictures of their teachers to make it seem that their teachers were doing things that only catholic priests can manage. They also threw in some acts of violence and other depravity. Certain teachers have had to take time off with stress. (Fucking wimps!) If we had that ability in our day, we wouldn’t have dared. Not through respect. Not through not wanting to but simply because we knew the teachers would have belted us into oblivion!!
That would be apart from Mr Heigh, he would have been more than happy to pose and come up with some artistic ideas!
Now onto this week’s stories.
We had two new folks who we welcome, a third timer and two well established writers of the site.
First up on Monday was the multi-talented Adam Kluger with ‘Swiper Alley’. This was story number fifty eight for him.
‘The mix of ordinary and extraordinary was well done.’
‘This easily won me over.’
That’s us for another week folks.
Keep doing what you are doing.
The comments were up five percent last month so all good!
Two things before some music.
Firstly – I need to give a nod to Rory McIlroy as he became only the fourth golfer to win back to back Masters wins. (Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods are the other three.)
And thank you Sky for your TV domination which stopped me watching it!!!
I’ve probably told you my favourite golfing saying many times before but since I haven’t pissed off the woke fuckers for a while, here it is again.
A short putt can be called a Rock Hudson…It looks straight but isn’t!
Secondly here is something that fucks up the idea that ‘they’ can be used as a pronoun.
A wee riddle to tease you.
Add one letter to two letters to change gender.
Add another letter to change it back.
Add another three to change it again.
Take away one and when taken, means you’ll not give a fuck who or what you are.
There’s no specific reason why I have chosen this piece of music, I think it was simply because I wanted something that’s more enhanced the louder that you play it!!
Lucy kept an eye on the man at the corner table. He’d glance at the front door each time it opened and then return his gaze to a book whose pages he rarely turned. He waited for someone.
Due to his departure to the green fields of the PAWS’ center located about a half hour north of here, this is the first spring in which Andy Hisster (The Gray fella above this paragraph) does not rule (in person) the courtyard of my building in what feels like ten years. My uncertainty of the year is because I can not remember the moment I meet any Feral Cat, they just appear, magically, and it feels as though they have always been.
Oh my oh my, after reading Bingo, I wondered what kind of father our beloved Hugh Cron would be. Actually, I think he would be an excellent parent because he would never bullshit his kids about Santa, organized religion or “The Farm” where pets go, mysteriously, all of a sudden while the child is in school. “Sparky decided he will be happy, there, at The Farm,” Papa said, wiping his eyes due to a sudden recurrence of his “allergies.”
Where to begin? ‘Where’ being the significant word.
Some places seem to have been created to be a home for the disconcerting and unknowable. Dartmoor was the natural petri dish for The Hound of the Baskervilles. It is so… elemental. The dirty, dark and narrow alleys of Victorian London’s East End spawned Brother Jack, whoever he was, or might still be. But other places are so mundane you can’t imagine anything beyond the norm happening there.
(Elliott the Header Pigeon is on vacation this week. PDQ Peety is filling in and is also filling himself with PDQ Pilsner.)
Introduction
I again found myself undertaking the idea of the End of Humankind. Which is not to be confused with the End of the World because that will happen a few billion years from now when the sun dies, at which time it will greatly expand and obliterate everything on out to Jupiter. Like the rabid cur shot dead by Atticus in To Kill a Mockingbird a dead sun is still a dangerous sun.
literally stories 