Lance Greenfield's Blog, page 57
September 27, 2016
Review: The Sentry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the first Robert Crais that I have read, and I enjoyed it very much. It is certainly action-packed and fast-paced from the very first page. There is a lot of brutal violence involved, and plenty of blood.
The hero, Joe Pike, watches out for the oppressed. He is a very tough guy, and I would certainly prefer to have him as a friend than an enemy. Surprisingly, for such a character, he sometimes lets his heart lead his mind. His supporter, Elvis Cole, is tough too, but seems more analytical in his approach, and tries to make Pike see the sense in his actions. The balance is great.
Some of the FBI agents and police officers involved are complete idiots, and some are bent. However, some of them are doing the right thing, and are straight down the middle. The twists and turns in the story keep you wondering which is which until the author chooses to reveal the truth. That is good suspense writing.
The bad guys are also very tough, and the match is almost even. Who will prevail? Well you have to read the whole book to its very gory conclusion to find out!
The one thing that did confuse and distract me, was that one of the characters is called Chloe, and is male. I have always thought of Chloe as a girl’s name, so I was thinking, “This is one helluva tough chick,” for about two-thirds of the book! Maybe it’s a common guy’s name in America, but not here in In-ger-land!
Anyway, this is a book that I’d recommend to anyone who can cope with a good story ladled with a huge dollop of violence.
September 26, 2016
Day 38 – The Last Post
Adge Roe: a man with attitude!
Well, it had to happen at some point and so today will be my final post from what’s been a wonderful adventure.
I researched on how to finish a blog; some said review the aim, some said pick out the highlights, some said reflect on the experience, some said thank everyone including Great Aunt Doris from Leckhampton! All of which have their merits, but I reckon you would be bored stupid reading it, so I’m taking a bit of a rambling and random approach to this final post…!
Can I thank each and everyone one of you again, for taking the time to read and comment on ‘the words that I wrote’; it gave me much pleasure scribing my daily notes, but equally reading your replies provided me with the incentive to keep pedalling!
A special word of thanks to my blog mistress (Lizzie), who daily edited and uploaded the…
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September 25, 2016
Day 37 – La Storta to Rome
Read about this fantastic achievement by my old friend, Adge Roe.
It was a long journey and he is now a shadow of his former self – the selfie proves it!
Well that’s it! Ride finished and passport eventually stamped in the Sacrisant in the Vatican (despite the attempts to thwart my entry by a Paul Hollywood lookalike, he obviously didn’t realise the might of the UK passport and an ex servicemans ability to ‘blag’!)
The final few km were relatively straightforward, particularly if you adopt the Italian driving approach when cycling! I met Joe Bloggs late morning and left him to guard Bessie while I resolved the passport issue.
My entrance to Rome was not quite the triumphs that Roman history is famed for, mine was more low key, but nevertheless still quite emotional. As I cycled past Castel Sant’Angelo (made famous by Dan Brown) a lone guitarist was playing Samba Pa Ti by Santana, which is strangely enough one of my favourites (now is that conicidence or what?)
I suppose at the end of such a trip, I should…
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September 23, 2016
Review: Wesley: The Story of a Remarkable Owl
Wesley: The Story of a Remarkable Owl by Stacey O’Brien
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Enchanting
There are already hundreds of reviews of this book on Goodreads, so I shan’t repeat the storyline for you. However, for those of you who have any feeling for the amazing stories of relationships between animals and humans, this is a “must read.”
Stacey and Wesley live their lives together from the time that the owl is four days old. They form such a very strong relationship that they converse with each other, and share each other’s emotions, happy and sad. The story is beautifully narrated, with sentiment, and it will make you laugh and it will make you cry.
Don’t hang about waiting for me to say any more. Go and get yourself a copy and read it. I can safely say that you are more likely to thank me for that recommendation than to curse me for it.
View all my reviews
Day 35 – Abbadia San Salvatore to Viterbo
Adge è megagallatica!
I have to ask you all a question, do you believe in coincidence, karma, chance or any other similar occurrences? The reason I ask, is because today someone somewhere was definitely guiding my journey. Let me explain further. The day started really well with a long winding descent from Abbadia San Salvatore to Acquapendente. That section of the SS2 is another one to add to your ‘bucket list’ of roads to travel. Breathtaking scenery, quiet roads, hairpin bends, blue skies and sunshine it was perfect. There was a small climb into Acquapendente that increased the heart rate, but the effort was well worth it. A beautiful little place which was teeming with people as it was market day.
Radicafone in the distance.
I found the Municipio and went in search of someone to stamp my passport. I was waiting outside the right office when a group of three Italians stopped…
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September 21, 2016
“there are no rules of architecture for a castle in the clouds.” ~g.k. chesterton
I didn't have my glasses on....
what a beautiful morning to help
at the annual
juvenile diabetes research foundation event
and
to take a great walk after
right in the mix with
dogs, babies, strollers, scooters, families,
friends, teams, singles, wagons and trees
and then come to the end
very happy to have been a part of it all.
“we are all here on earth to help others;
what on earth the others are here for I don’t know.”
-w.h. auden
—
—
photo credit: steve townsend
September 20, 2016
Retired Ladies Live Their Dreamlife in a Cosy Forest House
Have you wondered how you’ll spend your retired days? I’ll give you an idea. A genius Japanese architect created an unique home for 2 retired ladies with their caretaker and a cook.
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Day 33 – Siena to Abbadia San Salvatore
Both of Adge’s charities strike a chord with me but, today, the meningitis charity became even more pertinent when I received some unexpected, tragic news.
My friend’s teenage daughter came home early from work on Friday evening. On Saturday morning, she died from meningitis. I cannot imagine how he feels and I am truly lost for words.
Well I made the decision last night; Siena, mosquitoes and I were not compatible. With that in mind, I left to head South with Radificone as a possible destination. Foolishly I decided to let Mr Garmin have one more opportunity to redeem himself by taking me out of Siena… why did I bother? Mr Garmin now lives at the bottom of my panniers, I would rather place my trust in a handful of bones!
The day started overcast and quite chilly, but improved later, but is now threatening rain! The Italian towns and villages came and went and the beautiful rolling Tuscany countryside came up trumps – it also through in some seriously lumpy hills! Late morning as the sun was burning through, I caught my first glimpse of the majestic Mount Amiata, which would remain omni present and would almost become my nemesis!
The middle ground underneath the cloud…
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Correlation
So cute!
And that shower triggering the doorbell phenomena is prevalent. We have all suffered.
It is along the same lines as cleaning the windows is more likely to bring rain than the most potent rain dance.
Espiritu en Fuego/A Fiery Spirit
DeBorah had a Little Lamb
Timing
The time space that happens when you’re either taking off your clothes and getting into the shower or coming out of the shower wrapped only in a towel and the exact moment that the United States Postal Service or the UPS Guy will ring your doorbell!!
Go Figure!!
Beatles Shine with Passion and Energy in New Documentary “8 Days a Week: the Touring Years”
This was well covered on the radio and put me into a happy nostalgic spin in my childhood days.
How young, innocent, and naive they were, aged in their early twenties: cheeky and endearing. As Paul McCartney puts it, “At the beginning it was all very simple. By the end it had become very complicated.”
And in the Beatles new documentary “8 Days a Week: The Touring Years” we saw a transformation rather similar to the one which we witnessed in Diana, Princess of Wales – a transition from youth and innocence to another state of being harder, more cynical and worldly-wise, more knowing and more guarded, more self-protective. It is an inevitable transition in many ways, one we all make, and yet we never see our own transition writ large upon the screen, projected before the public gaze, as with those who become famous.
In this respect it is their story, but our story too. There were many moments when the whole cinema audience burst out laughing at…
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