30 Years Isn’t A Long Enough Time

There is some swearing in this entry so if you’re not comfortable with that, please read no further. Thanks.

Yesterday, I bumped into someone I hadn’t seen in nearly 30 years. At first, I was pleased to see him. After about 10 minutes, I was just hoping he would fck off, to be honest.

He hadn’t changed at all. A little bit greyer and a few extra pounds but the same insufferable arsehole he always was. I suddenly remembered how he would give out a compliment and then put a barb within that somewhere to let you know your place. Also, the way he would project out to me his own shit. He accused me of giving him backhanded compliments when I knew him before, which is something I didn’t do. Then gave me a whole slew of them. He told me how he thought I was a good writer back then (I had not mentioned my writing to him, either then or now) but that he didn’t know what the hell I was on about half the time when he had ‘slogged through’ what I had written. Now that’s a backhanded compliment if ever I heard one.

I then had to endure his ‘photographic memory’ which is how he referred to this ‘gift’ he has and things he recollected which I hadn’t thought about in 30 years, and which came back to me after he had mentioned them. Things which were of zero importance in essence, such as meeting me in a pub alongside others for a social drink and the way I belittled him but apparently did so ‘jokingly.” Suddenly, I was back in that environment and could recall what he was talking about. Only that he was putting an unpleasant and untruthful spin on what were everyday, normal conversations. Yes, there was banter but nothing disrespectful.

Then I had to hear about how he had travelled the world extensively during the time we weren’t in contact with one another. He went on about how popular and learned he was and how he held high positions of authority. Funny then that he’s doing a fairly mundane and not very well paying job now that a) anyone with an interest in that area could qualify for and b) a job he had heard about through a friend, a friend who in fact, helped him get that specific role.

Whenever I went to say something, he would say “okay” and put his hand up to basically shush me and then talk some more about his own experiences. It was a constant stream with no let up. I had a very clear recall as he was doing that of just why 30 years have passed by without remaining in contact with him and that’s because he is a monumental arsehole, who makes everything about him.

After all of that, he said to me that he would love to know what I’ve been doing and chat longer but that he needed to be somewhere and just walked off. I was glad. I felt exhausted. He’s one of those energy leeches.

I hope I never come into contact with him again. The thought that I might do so again in 2053 which will be the same time frame of absence, frankly fills me with dread. He can have his amazing experiences of what an incredible person he feels himself to be. I am happy to be a boring, unaccomplished, non-entity by comparison.

3rd Apr 2024 3

Hiding In Plain Sight

I had to go out today because I had a dental appointment. When I arrived, I was informed the clinic was closed due to illness. To be honest, I was glad. I wasn’t looking forward to having another tooth out, as I always get a dry socket which comes on 2-3 days after the work’s been done. It being a Wednesday and the fact the clinic is closed on the weekend, the idea of being in pain until Monday at the earliest when it could be alleviated, didn’t sit well with me. So, it was okay.

Anyhow, I ended up going grocery shopping and on the way there, I stopped in a charity shop and perused the DVDs. I ended up buying a few however it wasn’t until I reached home that I noticed the front and rear cover design of one of them, which you can see below.

And there it is. I don’t know why but I never thought Billy Connolly would be in the “Right eye covered” club. But then so is both Walter Trout and Richard Thompson. See below.

This is not a natural pose. In all the time I have played guitar and all the times I have hung out with fellow musicians, never once did any of those people feel the need to cover their right eyes up with the head-stock of their guitars. Neither have I ever met anyone who felt the need to cover their right eye up when I have taken their photograph. It’s always those who are well-established within a profession which puts them in the public eye.

But what is it? Is it simply as some have stated “Left eye covered – Handler. Right eye covered – Handled.” Is it related to Odin, who plucked out an eye so he could be gifted with divine wisdom? Is it to do with a certain group who meet in lodges? Is it saying “I got here to this level because the powers that be have something over me” and this is a means to signal that to the world??? Is it to do with the All Seeing Eye? Is it simply another way of saying “In the public eye?” If that were the case though, everyone would be doing it and they’re not. There are a great many people who profess to be Christian as well who use all manner of symbols in their work. More on that HERE.

This phenomena has been covered in the mainstream media but it always defaults back to ‘conspiracy theorists’ with too much time on their hands. In other words, they bring it up specifically to dismiss it. Because it isn’t a natural occurrence and because we don’t know why so many within the spotlighted industries do this, I have reached the point now whereby anyone I see posing like this, I will no longer engage with their product even if it’s something I absolutely love. The reason is being kept hidden and I don’t think that bodes well for a) whatever it is they are involved with and b) by extension, what they are involving us in by engaging with it.

3rd Apr 2024 3

Art Imitating Life

I love art made by local artists. I saw this little chap the other day and I had to buy him.

I’ve named him Norman, after a comedian here in the UK who’s passed away now, Norman Collier. He was painted by Maria Meerstadt.

He’s a blue-footed Booby, which is a type of sea bird. I think he’s cute 💙🐦 I love the colours.

I saw him in a place named The Art Hut, which is just outside the entrance to the gift shop at The Herb Farm which is just a few miles down the road. The Herb Farm is a great place. It’s an independent nursery for flowers, plants, shrubs and herbs. It boasts a Saxon Maze and a terrific Coffee Shop as well.

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A week or so earlier, I had discovered a great artist who specialises in pet portraits. I looked through his portfolio and immediately felt this deep resonance with his art and reached out. We talked back and forth about what I wanted, which was a way to honour my dearly beloved and recently departed friend, The Queen B. I got such a good vibe off him that I went ahead and just left it up to him. I knew that however the work turned out, I would be happy.

Anyhow, he didn’t disappoint. I loved it immediately and told him so. He was happy that I was happy. He’s a really nice bloke. The work has been sent to me in such a way I can print it off in an 8″ by 10″ format for it to be framed. He got all the little aspects of The Queen B down perfectly. Her beautiful eyes. Her furry feet. Her gait which was unusual yet totally adorable. I loved the colours he opted for. He brought my friend back to life again and here she is.

If anyone is interested in getting a pet portrait done by this artist, then please leave me a comment and I’ll send you his details.

His pricing policy is a Pay What You Can Plan which means you can get a portrait done at any amount that you can afford, as he believes that art should be available to anyone and everyone who loves it.

24th Mar 2024 2

A Good Day

Today has been a really good day. I had been wanting to go visit a local Nature Reserve which is about 4 miles or so from here. So, we set off and it was only when we arrived we realised the location was of personal significance to both myself and my mother.

The road which leads down the the lake’s side is where my Godfather had lived. We went past his house and it was strange thinking he had resided there within those walls for over 2 decades. He would call every week, on a Saturday, ask after us and also tell us about his week. He mentioned the lake once in a while and there we were, beside it. We had never been to the house because his wife didn’t like my mother although there was nothing untoward between them. They were just good friends.

As we made our way along the footpath which hugs the water’s edge, I could feel Mr. P walking alongside us. It really is a very beautiful lake, nestled among houses. When you drive past, you don’t see the lake at all. Just trees. I was struck by how friendly everyone was. I spoke to quite a few people around there, out walking their dogs. Everyone was super-friendly. One of them with her dog named Wilson, who was lovely, told me about the various little places along the lake where you can walk down and be right up close to the bird-life.

We followed the path around the lake and fed the birds (ducks, swans, geese, gulls, moorhens, coots) at various points. We went through about a fifth of the sack of floating bird feed which we had purchased at Homecrafts in Caversham, the hardware shop I have previously written about. The bird people tucked in and ate heartily. We saw a solitary Egyptian Goose and a male Mandarin Duck, which had the most striking colours. We also saw a beautiful Grey Wagtail a little further along, near to the weir which is situated close to the wooden decking area where you are afforded clear views of the entire lake. We fed every single bird on the lake.

The Lake at Maiden Erlegh Nature Reserve

Some of the houses, the gardens backed onto the footpath and some had gates that were partly hidden by trees. There was also a deeply recessed area, a dip in the landscape which I thought would be a great place for a log cabin-style home. A hidden world within a hidden world. In one of the back gardens were some ornate looking, very furry chickens pecking at seed in their little home. They were very cute.

It was a really enjoyable visit and we will definitely return. The Nature Reserve is such a relaxing place with a peaceful, lovely atmosphere.

On a side note, earlier today I had been given a music recommendation. A band named Goose!

And because I was checking them out on Spotify, once what I was listening to ended, it led me to a band called Kendall Street Company (!) and this next song. Aged White Cheddar. I love the guitar solo at the end. The looseness of it. 2 bands I will get off into now. So yes, a good day in every sense.

8th Mar 2024 9

Beauty Surrounds Us

I’ve been alive for 50 years and I have spent most of that time in the town of Reading, Berkshire, UK and I had no idea there was a place called Maiden Erleigh Nature Reserve, which is featured in the YouTube video below.

This is on my to-do list, as is The Harris Garden which is reasonably close by. Then there’s Lavell’s Lake which is a little bit further afield but only a few miles up the road. Then there’s Hartslock a little further away again which boasts stunning views of the countryside and is home to incredible flora and fauna.

Fobney Island Nature Reserve, I visit semi-regularly. It’s a Wetland and is situated just a few hundred metres from a recycling plant. As you exit the plant, there is a very nondescript looking narrow road and that takes you into an equally bland looking car park. Once there, a 100 yards or so and that takes you to a bridge, a weir, a river and a canal. That’s where everything opens up. You can walk along the canal path, which is very beautiful or you can go into the wide open expanses of the reserve itself, where there are various bird hides to sit and watch the avian displays or places to sit and enjoy the natural ambience.

Earlier this week, we made our way to Kidmore End Pond and then onto Widmore Pond in Sonning Common, where we fed the inhabitants (mainly ducks) with floating bird seed, which they ate heartily. Both ponds had a duck home atop the water, for the bird people to call home.

All these delightful little places are to be found within the encroaching metropolis.

We were driving through Sonning last night and Mum asked me if there were any places nearby where we could go and feed the birds. I opened Google Maps and less than a mile away, we discovered a place called Ali’s Pond Local Nature Reserve. Neither of us had ever heard of it but there it was, just a stone’s throw away from where we were.

That’s when we discovered via Google Maps, Lousehill Copse, Blundell’s Copse, Loddon Nature Reserve, Aldermoors Nature Reserve and Moor Copse Nature Reserve. All of these places, less than a half hour drive from us. Beauty surrounds us yet it took me a half-century to finally open my eyes to see it. What I have been seeking isn’t ‘out there someplace’ but right here and right now and it’s bloody marvellous.

29th Feb 2024 3

Guitar Lessons

I am deliberating as to whether to set up a subscription to join Active Melody. It’s run by a guitarist and teacher named Brian Sherrill and for $12 per month I will have access to all the available past lessons, the tablature and the jam tracks, which are free to download to play over. Plus, the ability to post in the forums and many more things besides. It has attracted some bigger names as well. The actor, James Woods as an example, is a subscriber.

Below is a taste of one of his guitar lessons. I like his approach to playing guitar. Melodic but never too technical.

26th Feb 2024 4

A Little Shop That Sells Everything

There’s a hardware shop fairly local to me. It’s an independent venture and is small. The frontage is no more than 10 or 12 feet wide. However, once you step across the threshold they seem to have thought of everything in terms of goods.

It has a lot of nooks and crannies within in which I love. So, you go in and in that tiny section right in front of you (10 feet wide by 8 feet long) is bird food of various different types, wool, needles, thread, scissors, curtain rods you name it.

To the left is a doorway which takes you into a little enclosed area. In there is paint, white spirit, wallpaper remover, rollers to apply paint, brushes.

Walking back through to the shop, there are 3 or 4 small steps on either side which lead up to the serving area. In that section is everything to do with cooking, pots, pans, dishes, moulds etc There are light bulbs, strip lights, starter motors for said strip lights, fuses.

Then there’s another doorway and in that area are hooks to hold up pictures, tacks, nails, screws. Then there is a further section, another nook which is enclosed and you don’t know it’s there until you’re right on top of it and that sells garden supplies as well as more specialised bird feed for ducks and the like.

The entire shop’s footprint is probably no more than 50 feet in length by maybe 20 feet wide and yet it seems to have everything you could conceivably want within it.

I had gone in there yesterday to buy some more peanuts for the garden birds as well as wild bird feed and we thought we were going to have to drive right across town to get a strip light for the kitchen. That’s when I discovered they sell them there. A little bit more expensive but still perfectly reasonably priced.

We ended up just staying local in terms of shopping which was handy for us because of a little shop that sells everything.

24th Feb 2024 8

Waking Up With Llamas

As I do most mornings, I make a coffee and find something to listen to while I feed the cats and this morning it was going to be Snowy White – Midnight Blues which I love immensely. The slow build-up of the guitar soloing throughout the track blows me away every time I listen.

So that was going to be my mood music and then I saw my friend, Sharine, had uploaded a video on YouTube entitled “Music With The Llamas at Prairie Patch Farm” so this is my initial morning music and I’m happy to share it with you all. I love llamas. They’re the best people. On travel guitar is music maestro Ron Hagadone, Sharine’s husband. We love you, too.

18th Feb 2024 2

The Fling

If any segment within an episode distilled the essence of a show, it would be this one. It’s contained within one of my favourite TV series of all time, Northern Exposure. Introducing to you “The Fling.”

And of course, the intro music and The Moose!

16th Feb 2024 0

Finding A New Show To Binge Watch

I have been binge watching the TV show Blue Bloods now for about 2 months. It was Castle before that and I wish I hadn’t watched it for as long as I did. Once the 2 lead actors got together, that felt like the natural ending to the show because it was the “Will They – Won’t They” tension that kept the show fresh.

Before Castle was Justified which resolved well however I wish they had ended the final show with Raylan walking into the elevator wearing his new hat, the doors closing and the end credits coming up. Instead, they wrapped everything up neatly with a little bow on top, showing us in the remainder of time of that episode what happened to the main characters. We have imaginations which we could have used instead.

It has been announced that Blue Bloods will be ending as a show at the finale of Season 14. They’re going to do a 2-hour special however having just finished Season 9, I’m going to walk away now. Season 10 is supposed to be excellent however no new characters will be entering the fray.

There is very little character development happening now anyway, in relation to the personal lives of the main cast plus I find myself watching simply for the chemistry of the actors rather than being surprised anymore by the script or the action pieces. I had hoped Danny and Baez would get together. There were moments where it felt as if the story-lines would draw them together but nope, nothing came of it. I started to feel as if I had seen it all before. I don’t know what the final episode would be like for Season 10 however Season 9 ending with Jamie and Eddie getting married and her joining the Reagan family formally, feels like a good place to step off the Blue Bloods carousel. It’s been good. I’ve enjoyed it immensely.

Now. it’s finding something else to watch. I’ve heard The Blacklist is good. I’ve heard the same about Deadwood and Boardwalk Empire. I realise now why I liked Blue Bloods so much and that’s because it had the same writing team as in The Sopranos. It was nice to see Steven R. Schirripa in Blue Bloods, as Anthony. He had deftly portrayed Bobby Baccalieri in The Sopranos and he was one of my favourite characters within that. A few other actors from The Sopranos featured in Blue Bloods along the way, namely Aida Turturro, John Ventimiglia, Vincent Curatola and Michael Imperioli.

Walking away without watching the finale of a show isn’t something I ever usually did however the first time was for one of my favourite ever shows, Northern Exposure. The entire premise of the show was about a doctor consigned to working in the fictitious Alaskan town of Cicely who hates it and tries everything he can to leave. The fish-out-of-water story-line was excellent, as he was introduced to some of the most eccentric (and in my opinion, brilliant) characters ever to grace a TV show. In the final season, he just vanishes partway into it and they bring a new couple in, thus completely destroying the vibe which had ably served the show up until then. I parted company at the season 5 finale and I’m glad I did, where the lead character Dr. Joel Fleischman (played by Rob Morrow) jubilantly proclaims “I am one of you now. I am a Cicelian.”

So, I am currently without a TV show to binge watch. I tried watching Yellowstone because I had heard good things about it however it wasn’t for me. Same with Longmire. I didn’t like that at all. I was in a charity shop/thrift store the other day and they had the Batman – The Dark Knight Trilogy for sale on DVD so I bought that. I’m trying to watch different movies genres to what I would normally opt for. I sat down last night and tried to watch the first instalment, Batman Begins but I had to turn it off part way through. I just couldn’t get on with it. Plus, Liam Neeson’s facial hair was giving me the heebie-jeebies.

If I’m honest, I only really enjoy watching detective procedural dramas. My favourite being the 1970’s run of Columbo episodes. If you know of any good shows you think I might like to watch, please drop me a line with your recommendations. Thanks.

16th Feb 2024 0