David L. Atkinson's Blog, page 89

10 news snippets

A real mixed bag of news snippets this week some of which show the difference between today's freedoms and those of yesteryear. 
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1. People tend to unconsciously sniff their hands after a handshake.
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2. The full name of Super Mario's pet dinosaur Yoshi is T Yoshisaur Munchakoopas.

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3. A swarm of red bees was responsible for the discovery of New York's biggest marijuana farm.

Buzz buzz man!
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4. BBC Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet once curled at provincial level in Canada.

Really!
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5. During the Nazi occupation of France, Wallis Simpson got American diplomats to rescue her favourite Nile green swimsuit from the Windsors' rented villa on the Cote d'Azur.

As if there weren't any others!
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6. Dogs are less stressed when classical music is played to them.

It ain't just dogs!

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7. An athlete named Reg Spiers posted himself from London, UK, to Perth, Australia in the mid-1960s in a wooden crate.

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8. King Arthur may have been Glaswegian.

Of course he may.

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9. Fewer large US companies are run by women than by men named John.

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10. Lions can open car doors.

I used to like visiting safari parks.
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God Bless

Writing - How history influences all of our lives

I was impressed by an email received today concerning the influence of history on the most sophisticated operations we have around today.
A section of the Canadian railway
I remember as a child at school being taught about railways and Stephenson's Rocket, transport and railway tracks. We were taught about the gauge of the tracks and the fact that there were parts of the world that didn't have the same gauge which fairly obviously would have a knock on effect for travelling from country to country. However, although I have learned the reason for the standard gauge, the history of the gauge we weren't told and yet it was so important. Read on.
The U.S. Standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. Why was that gauge used? Because that's the way they built them in England, and English expatriates designed the U.S. Railroads.
 Why did the English build them like that?
 Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that's the gauge they used.
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Why did 'they' use that gauge then?
 Because the people who built the tramways used the same jig and tools that they had used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing.

Why did the wagons have that particular Odd wheel spacing?
 Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels would break on some of the old, long distance roads in England, because that's the spacing of the wheel ruts.
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So, who built those old rutted roads?
Imperial Rome built the first long distance roads in Europe (including England ) for their legions. Those roads have been used ever since. And the ruts in the roads?
 Roman war chariots formed the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match for fear of destroying their wagon wheels.
 

Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome, they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing.
 Therefore, the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches is derived from the original specifications for an Imperial Roman war chariot.In other words, bureaucracies live forever. So the next time you are handed a specification, procedure,or process, and wonder, 'What horse's ass came up with this?', you may be exactly right.Imperial Roman army chariots were made just wide enough to accommodate the rear ends of two war horses.
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Now, the twist to the story:
When you see a Space Shuttle sitting on its launch pad, you will notice that there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are solid rocket boosters, or SRBs built in Utah.
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The engineers who designed the SRBs would have preferred to make them a bit larger, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. The railroad line from the factory happens to run through a tunnel in the mountains, and the SRBs had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than the railroad track, and the railroad track, as you now know, is about as wide as two horses' behinds.
 So, a major Space Shuttle design feature of what is arguably the world's most advanced transportation system was determined over two thousand years ago by the width of a horse's ass!
Now you know, Horses' Asses control almost everything.......

It's almost like a game of consequences and yet the above article is the result of fastidious research and a dash of logical thinking. In fact the gauge was standardised in the UK in 1846 with an act of parliament. From there the dissemination of the gauge across 60% of the world is down to British engineers building rail networks abroad and the subsequent export of rolling stock.
In fact the story about the Romans influence is a legend so there may be some truth in the tale but it would be difficult to prove. In England the Great Western Railway used a 7 foot gauge and the standard gauge was eventually adopted by all due to the number of miles of track already laid. 4 feet 8.5 inches was more common and therefore accepted as the standard.
God Bless

Writing - Paper and ink rules.

Some very interesting facts have emerged on this year's World Book Day. More stories than ever have been bought in book form suggesting that rather than being overtaken by ebooks they are just as popular as ever and the electronic version is an addition.
[image error]Children dress up for World Book Day 
The usual trek to school looked somewhat more colourful this morning as children were encouraged to dress up as their favourite characters from literature. The really great thing is that World Book Day seems to have become a 'habit' in the best sense of the word. I just hope that schools take the opportunity to indulge themselves in the glories of books and stories as well as allowing the children to dress differently.


My 10 books as of December 2014
Steele   My hero was created post recession and so has no concept of how 'good' things were pre-2008. In 'I Have To Get It Right' when he began to flex his muscles he was working in an accountant's office. Then after the Gurentai took him under their wing and removed all of his financial worries, it was justice that was his major concern. He did become involved in international relations in 'The 51st State' but it was for the maintenance of a respectful distance between countries, rather than economic reasons. His trips into the USA had repercussions which can be read about in 'The Biter Bit' but then by the time things began to change in 2011 and the recession was really biting, Steele was trying to make sense of the state of the nation in 'A Changed Reality' and coming up against some really nasty people taking advantage of the shortage of money. By the time the USA are out of their recession Steele's steps are still being dogged by an unknown enemy from the same country. In 'Inceptus' we also find out more about what makes the man tick. The most recent Steele book 'Castled' where Steele is once again at risk from unseen enemies. It would seem that he has become quite recession proof!The most recent addition to the Steele family is Earth plc in which our hero is concerned with political and emotional issues in this crime fighting adventure.
All books are available in paperback or ebook through Amazon, Smashwords and all good book shop websites.


Cessation 


This is a dystopian story that hinges directly on the state of the nation as a result of fiscal mismanagement. Having said that it is more a story of human relations, privations, love and loss.
Poetry - there are also two thin collections of poetry available solely through Amazon.
The Musings of a Confused Mind 
and
Words from the Raindrops 

God Bless
Visit David L's profile on Pinterest.

Poetry Thursday 150 - Reading on World Book Day

It is interesting how people who would describe themselves as divergent, outside the box, blue sky thinking types, tend to have their own rails upon which their lives are run. They are quick to criticise but in fact should look to their own set of rails.
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Life on Rails
On rails there is direction,a path laid out and safe to follow.A track leading to termination,a distance either deep or shallow
Several jolts along the wayalmost enough to leave the track,but the magnetic road won’t let you stray,and the spinning wheels find their way back.
Great moments when the track is smooth,and the joy of the journey unsurpassed.It feels good to continue in the repetitive groove,you feel hope that progress will long last.


The critics say they wish for change,scornful of your regulated progression.Yet they too have tracks with little range,that carry them to their secret obsession.
So enjoy the rules that make your pattern,take comfort in the predictability.Follow the rails made at your instruction,and continue to the inevitable terminus of vitality.© David L Atkinson March 2015
On World Book Day we should take the opportunity to consider our own reading. I used to think it was hard to have more than one book on the go at once but currently I'm reading three.
For relaxation - Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch
For interest - Silkworm by Robert Galbraith (J K Rowling)
and for education - A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
Here are some other thoughts on reading.

Reading
Why read?when you can get everything faster from TV,when a computer has more options,when it takes time to finish a book,when you do it all alone,when it is a pastime too quiet.
Why not read?when you can apply imagination,when you can live several lives,when you have countless experiences,when you never need to leave your chair,when you’re surrounded by fascinating folk,when time is no longer a barrier to travel.© David L Atkinson March 2015

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Travel the world from a chair
A book holds a story that will never die,it is there to entertain forever.The story is your transport to times gone by,or a rocket hurtling towards the future.
The people inside are fallible like you,but with help may foil the danger,or follow a path taken by few,and perhaps find a babe in a manger!
You may travel the wide world from your chair,or never leave this wonderful land.Change your colour or perm your hair,without the risk of wearing a new brand.
The skies the limit every time you trythe same story read a dozen times.Let your imagination be free and fly,in the words of stories and of rhymes.© David L Atkinson March 2015

As it is World Book Day I have reduced the price of my books on 
smashwords.com  to $0.99 which works out at around £0.72 for 
one day only. Search under David L Atkinson and there is even a 20% sample.

God Bless

Writing - World Book Day 5th March

Once again it is here - World Book Day
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World Book Day is a celebration! It’s a celebration of authors, illustrators, books and (most importantly) it’s a celebration of reading. In fact, it’s the biggest celebration of its kind, designated by UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of books and reading, and marked in over 100 countries all over the world.
Over the last week or two it has been quite gratifying for me to hear a number of people comment that they enjoy reading and like me have both an ereader and still buy paperbacks. 

Someone once said that what makes us human is the fact that we tell stories. From the earliest years as a teacher right through to the present day I have always enjoyed telling stories both to full classes and my own little ones. There is a joy in watching there eyes as they take in the words and see in their own mind's eye where you are taking them. Even classes of children as old as 13 years enjoyed being told a story, albeit of their choosing, but listened to collectively and discussed afterwards.
There is a magic between the covers of a book electronic or otherwise.

My 10 books as of December 2014
Steele   My hero was created post recession and so has no concept of how 'good' things were pre-2008. In 'I Have To Get It Right' when he began to flex his muscles he was working in an accountant's office. Then after the Gurentai took him under their wing and removed all of his financial worries, it was justice that was his major concern. He did become involved in international relations in 'The 51st State' but it was for the maintenance of a respectful distance between countries, rather than economic reasons. His trips into the USA had repercussions which can be read about in 'The Biter Bit' but then by the time things began to change in 2011 and the recession was really biting, Steele was trying to make sense of the state of the nation in 'A Changed Reality' and coming up against some really nasty people taking advantage of the shortage of money. By the time the USA are out of their recession Steele's steps are still being dogged by an unknown enemy from the same country. In 'Inceptus' we also find out more about what makes the man tick. The most recent Steele book 'Castled' where Steele is once again at risk from unseen enemies. It would seem that he has become quite recession proof!The most recent addition to the Steele family is Earth plc in which our hero is concerned with political and emotional issues in this crime fighting adventure.
All books are available in paperback or ebook through Amazon, Smashwords and all good book shop websites.


Cessation 


This is a dystopian story that hinges directly on the state of the nation as a result of fiscal mismanagement. Having said that it is more a story of human relations, privations, love and loss.
Poetry - there are also two thin collections of poetry available solely through Amazon.
The Musings of a Confused Mind 
and
Words from the Raindrops 


As it is World Book Day I have reduced the price of my books on 
smashwords.com  to $0.99 which works out at around £0.72 for 
one day only. Search under David L Atkinson and there is even a 20% sample.
God Bless
Visit David L's profile on Pinterest.

Tuesday cooking - Creamy chilli, bacon and tomato spaghetti

I was beginning to wind down this page however, I discovered a recipe for a spaghetti sauce that sounded tasty and proved to be so.

This recipe is very tasty and exceedingly inexpensive. Also as I often try to make life as easy as possible the mechanics of this dish couldn't be more simple.
Alternatives to bacon could be almost anything. The photograph shows bacon but I've also produced the dish with bratwurst sausage and reckon you could substitute meat for clams or other fish. If you are vegetarian then any firm root vegetable would go equally well.
The full recipe is on the TAB above

Now I don't usually add much on a recipe day, it is an excuse to have an easier blogging day, but I received an email from readwave.com concerning a short story I wrote a few months back saying that I'd reached 1000 readers. This prompted me to look back at some of the other stories I'd written for that site and was shocked to discover that the following has been read 15500+ times.
http://www.readwave.com/human-longevity-and-generation-y_s27602
It is a tongue in cheek look at what the future could look like for us of older generations in the hands of Generation Y!
God Bless

Writing - It's a little bit funny

The song lyrics from the title of the blog continue with 'this feeling inside' and when we include humour in our writing then that is what we wish to generate. It seems obvious to say that it is the same sort of reaction we'd want to all of the emotions.
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It's Sunday and I came across a couple of pieces that were relevant to my upbringing and liking of poetry that are worth sharing.
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'An Ode to Fifty Shades of Grey'The missus bought a Paperback
down Shepton, Saturday,
I had a look in her bag;
...T’was “Fifty Shades of Grey”.Well I just left her to it,
...At ten I went to bed.
An hour later she appeared;
The sight filled me with dread…In her left hand she held a rope;
And in her right a whip!
She threw them down on the floor,
And then began to strip.Well fifty years or so ago;
I might have had a peek;
But Mabel hasn’t weathered well;
She’s eighty four next week.Watching Mabel bump and grind;
Could not have been much grimmer.
Things then went from bad to worse;
She toppled off her Zimmer!She struggled up upon her feet;
A couple minutes later;
She put her teeth back in and said...
I must dominate her!!Now if you knew our Mabel,
You’d see just why I spluttered,
I’d spent two months in traction
For the last complaint I’d muttered.She stood there nude, naked like;
Bent forward just a bit ….
I thought oh well, what the hell,
and stood on her left tit!Mabel screamed, her teeth shot out;
My god what had I done!?
She moaned and groaned then shouted out:
“Step on the other one!”Well readers, I can’t tell no more;
About what occurred that day.
Suffice to say my jet black hair,
Turned fifty shades of Grey.by John SummersThe above is a lovely parody on the book and the film both of which I have avoided and which have been described to me as childish rubbish by different people, who have done some sampling.[image error]The Pope with his Sunderland shirt.So now to my Mackem upbringing. I've explained the meaning before but in brief it dates back to shipbuilding when the yards on the River Wear used to build the ships (make them or mackem) and then the Geordies on the River Tyne used to take them (tackem) and finish the ships.Now here is a more detailed and slightly spurious explanation.mackemn. A demi-god worshipped by ancient civilisations as the epitome of wit and sexual prowess. Romans and Vikings colonised the area in the hope of developing a race of supermen to help them in their ambitions. The word is based on a blend of Roman and Norse, and means 'astonishingly well-endowed, funny and attractive angel on a temporary visit from Valhalla'.Not to be confused with Geordie who were the unfortunate result of a Roman experiment in which Scotsmen had intercourse with pigs. These unfortunate troll-like humanoids can be identified by the fact that they have to wear clothes covered in a large barcode so they can be tracked and controlled by security satellites.Okay so it is all a little self-centred but if you consider the way they are created writers could develop similar comparisons between other groups.Whatever you think, have a great weekend.God Bless

10 snippets from last week's news

There's all sorts of stuff I could spend time expounding on this week, ranging from the murder of an anti-establishment Russian to the silliness of politicians, but here are a few less frustrating pieces from the news.
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1. About half of all novels accord to Kurt Vonnegut's "Man in Hole" narrative theory - man gets into trouble, man gets out of it.
Interesting that Vonnegut was yet another writer who saw the flaws in society and did his best to expose them.
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2. Artificial intelligence can teach a machine how to win Atari video games.

That seems like a really useful idea!!!!

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3. Squid can fly - but they tend to do it under cover of darkness.

Just like me and modesty prevents me from demonstrating.
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4. Lollipop men who "high five" pedestrians may be breaching official protocol.

And I wonder which anally retentive council official wrote that protocol!!!!

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5. Kit Kat and Twix account for almost a third of all chocolate bars sold in the UK's Houses of Parliament.

I'm sorry - I just couldn't resist this photograph that epitomises so many MPs!
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6. Google for a time thought that Beatles biographer Hunter Davies, who is still writing books, died in 1980.

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7. A dress can look blue and black or white and gold to different people.

It was all black and blue for me.

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8. Europe's largest collection of pinball machines is in a basement in Budapest.

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9. Wheat turned up on British shores 2,000 years earlier than previously thought.

I really hope some university isn't paying for this kind of pointless research.
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10. UK-based fast food chain Chicken Cottage uploaded a film of their awards dinner to YouTube - it's over an hour long.

Amazing! I've never heard of them - must be a southern company!


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God Bless

Writing - Human behaviour in different contexts

When we write stories we are 'playing' with human behaviours in the hope that some of our readers find the 'game' entertaining.
See nowt, say nowt, hear nowt!!
It has often been said that there are only around seven story lines from which we can weave our magic on the page but it has just struck me that in a sense that is like trying to categorise all of life into just seven scenarios. Those who have read my literary dribblings on previous occasions may remember that I have an aversion to those who constantly try and categorise everything as if they are terrified of randomness. You know the sort of things - '12 rules for writing novels' or '8 essential grammar checks' or whatever - when really, writing is an individual response to the way the writer feels about something. 

Our writing depends on our personal history, experiences that have influenced our own lives, as well as interactions with others. The only thing for certain is that there are no rules. The grammar is a technical issue that facilitates reading or otherwise, the font type and size are again technical points but the ideas are what they are. This is why I have doubts about writers' block. Most of the time 'getting stuck' is about making choices or decisions. When you have an idea for a story the mechanics of getting it down on paper may cause some sticking points but the story is still the story.

When you are writing and there is an incident you wish to include but it has become a bit of a sticking point then that is the time to use empathy so that you may better understand what it is you're trying to achieve. It may be that you feel you have never had that type of experience but it may just be a matter of scale. The first step is to think yourself into the situation and understand how you would feel in one of the players' shoes. Then write how it feels.
Context
Human behaviour depends largely on the situation in which people find themselves. We may often wonder what makes a killer or a thief, it may be that you could never imagine yourself becoming either of those things, but there is a plethora of work on the triggers that may change human behaviour into something previously unimaginable. One of the many benefits of the internet is the availability of information on almost any subject that you can imagine.My 'guy' Patrick A Steele is a complex character, he has killed, and there is in 'I Have To Get It Right' and 'Inceptus' more background as to his early life that I hope will help readers understand where he is coming from even though it is accepted that he has done wrong. By providing context in this form it is my aim to encourage the readers of my books to better understand Steele and his behaviours in the situations that I create for him.


I have been criticised by a few people for a few mistakes that I and my editors have missed in the past and it could be discouraging if taken to heart but mostly the criticisms are technical (not so much these days) or genre related. What is undiminished irrespective of criticism is the drive to write. I haven't had the rejections Ray Bradbury had to deal with (over 300), but it is an indication of how powerful the need to write is once you've put pen to paper. So if you are tempted remember the words of Morgan Freeman in The Magic of Belle Isle 

Imagination is one of the most powerful forces known to man - be sure that you want to go in there as you  may never find your way out!
God Bless

Writing - Heinz 57 varieties

Today's title comes from my innate indecisiveness. The term Heinz 57 varieties has been used to describe mixtures ranging from race to mongrel dogs.
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In fact the term stems from an advertising campaign by J Heinz & Co. to tell the world about the wide range of foodstuffs they sell.
Q. So what has this to do with writing today?
A. Nothing! Just that there is a range of material in this blog.
Anniversaries
This year has a plethora of anniversaries to consider ranging from Agincourt to the Magna Carta and beyond. It is also the 150th anniversary of the birth of Rudyard Kipling.
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Kipling is probably out of fashion these days as much of his writing was founded during the British Raj and his views have been questioned with regards to the British Empire. However, he was a compelling writer. I can remember being eleven years old, recovering from my first general anaesthetic for a tooth extraction and being given 'The Jungle Book' to read. To this day I can remember being spellbound by the antics of Rikki Tikki Tavi and of course the adventures of the most famous character Mowgli. 
[image error]Rikki Tikki Tavi
Then of course there is his poem recently voted the nation favourite If. It is too long to reproduce in its entirety but here are  the first and last verse to whet your appetite.
If you can keep your head when all about you       Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,   If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,    But make allowance for their doubting too;   If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,    Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,    And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,       Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,    If all men count with you, but none too much;If you can fill the unforgiving minute    With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,   Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,       And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!
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I promised variety and here goes. This is me leaping on my soapbox once again. In the news today are more revelations about the scale of Jimmy Savile's vile and extensive sexual crimes. The lady in charge of the inquiry has suggested that volunteers, including celebrities, should have rigorous checks into their background. She suggested the DBS service which goes into your police records and looks at all of your convictions up to the present date. There are obvious drawbacks. The day the DBS Certificate is issued it becomes out-of-date!Sounds like another fudge to me!
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My 10 books as of December 2014
Steele   My hero was created post recession and so has no concept of how 'good' things were pre-2008. In 'I Have To Get It Right' when he began to flex his muscles he was working in an accountant's office. Then after the Gurentai took him under their wing and removed all of his financial worries, it was justice that was his major concern. He did become involved in international relations in 'The 51st State' but it was for the maintenance of a respectful distance between countries, rather than economic reasons. His trips into the USA had repercussions which can be read about in 'The Biter Bit' but then by the time things began to change in 2011 and the recession was really biting, Steele was trying to make sense of the state of the nation in 'A Changed Reality' and coming up against some really nasty people taking advantage of the shortage of money. By the time the USA are out of their recession Steele's steps are still being dogged by an unknown enemy from the same country. In 'Inceptus' we also find out more about what makes the man tick. The most recent Steele book 'Castled' where Steele is once again at risk from unseen enemies. It would seem that he has become quite recession proof!The most recent addition to the Steele family is Earth plc in which our hero is concerned with political and emotional issues in this crime fighting adventure.
All books are available in paperback or ebook through Amazon, Smashwords and all good book shop websites.


Cessation 

This is a dystopian story that hinges directly on the state of the nation as a result of fiscal mismanagement. Having said that it is more a story of human relations, privations, love and loss.
Poetry - there are also two thin collections of poetry available solely through Amazon.
The Musings of a Confused Mind 
and
Words from the Raindrops 
God Bless
Visit David L's profile on Pinterest.