All of these vehicles had an engine, and could be driven. And none of them were specifically designed for use by children, though in some cases adults just couldn’t fit in them! | Continue reading
This the fourth part of a fiction serial, in 747 words. Fiddling with the Mac 10, Cisco spoke quietly. “Drive out real slow, head for the exit but not so fast as I don’t see them move”. Ricky was beginning to think that Cisco was completely paranoid, but as they drove past the ar … | Continue reading
I’m feeling a bit feisty today! | Continue reading
Long before human space flight became a reality in 1961, people were fascinated by the prospect of alien invasion, mutations caused by radiation, and living on other planets within a few years. This was reflected in the booming demand for science fiction films, novels, magazines, … | Continue reading
This is the third part of a fiction serial, in 800 words. Once the pickup was gassed up, Ricky arrived at Cisco’s place before six. Connie had pretended to be asleep when he left, probably because she was mad at him, and didn’t want to kiss him goodbye. She would change her tune … | Continue reading
Visit the post for more. | Continue reading
Julie’s daughter had the operation to remove her gall bladder on Wednesday as planned. It went well, and she was discharged from hospital 12 hours later, home the same day. There is now some recovery period at home, and she is being helped and supported by all the family. ——————— … | Continue reading
This video from Vintage Treasures has been colourised to bring some photos from that era to life. I love the styles and fashions of the 1920s, so the 30-minute video was a delight for me. It has some advertising in it, which can be skipped. | Continue reading
This is the second part of a fiction serial, in 769 words. By the time they had uncovered the boat and struggled to winch it on to the trailer, they were both drenched in sweat and covered in bug bites. Cisco lit a cigarette and clapped Ricky on the back. “Good work, my man. On … … | Continue reading
Visit the post for more. | Continue reading
When I was a child, I would have given anything to have something like these! I never realised so many were made all over the world, and in very different styles. Some are replicas of actual full size cars, as you can see. | Continue reading
This 16-minute video compiles a selection of interesting photos taken throughout history. They all come with a detailed narrated description, and some are very poignant. | Continue reading
This is the first part of a photo-prompt fiction serial, in 763 words. My thanks to Carolyn at https://catsincambridge.net/ for the use of her photo. Ricky was cleaning one of his mowers when the noisy truck appeared around the corner and swung onto his driveway. It was Cisco, he … | Continue reading
I found this 8-minute video showcasing before and after photos of locations all over America. Even for non-Americans, it is very interesting. | Continue reading
I was only 14 in 1966, but I knew a good song when I heard it, even though I had never heard of the singer at the time. Tim Hardin was an American singer/songwrier who sadly died at the age of 39 from a heroin overdose. This is one of the great songs he left … Continue reading Re … | Continue reading
Thanks to Shaily, I discovered this fascinating creature. I just had to reblog it, and the poem she dedicated to it. | Continue reading
In the UK, we call them ‘Caravans’. In America, they are known as ‘Trailers’. Whatever you call them, I have never been a fan of having to tow something on the back of a car along narrow country roads in Britain, find somewhere to stop with it for the night, and then try to relax … | Continue reading
Written over 100 years ago in 1923, I think this song really qualifies as ‘Retro’. The best-known version was recorded by Bessie Smith, the American Blues singer, in 1929. The release coincided with The Wall Street Crash, making the lyrics eminently suitable to the catastrophic f … | Continue reading
With some notable exceptions, I was never really a fan of Punk Rock or the later Post Punk scene that followed. However, I did enjoy the music of the Scottish band, Altered Images, and their deliberately quirky pop videos. Fronted by the cute and effervescent Claire Grogan, they … | Continue reading
Before 1907, if you wanted a colour photograph, a professional colourist had to colour it using different dyes and pigments. Two French brothers called Auguste and Louis Lumière revolutionised all that with a game-changing process that they called the Autochrome Lumière. Using dy … | Continue reading
This is just for the interest of those who like to know my process of writing a serial, and may consider writing their own one day. My latest serial, Acacia Close, was based on my idea to create a Soap-Opera style serial similar to those that are so popular on TV around the world … | Continue reading
This is all 24 parts of my recent fiction serial in one complete story. It is a long read, at 18,790 words. They had found the house online. It looked like a nice place to live, just twelve houses in a residential close, so no through traffic. Six modest detached three-beds on ei … | Continue reading
See if you can guess the answer… | Continue reading
This is the final part of a fiction serial, in 845 words. A hurried post-mortem establish manual stangulation as the cause of Emily’s death, and an equally fast DNA test later proved it was Emily Richardson. Her husband became the prime suspect, based on the fact that he had left … | Continue reading
It has been an eventful week. ————————————————————————————— One of my twin step-daughters was recently diagnosed with gall-bladder stones, and told she would need surgery soon. Then last Sunday she had a crisis, and had to be taken into hospital. After many tests, she was informe … | Continue reading
My step-daughters are identical twins. They were the first pair of such twins I ever got to know well, and for quite a while after I first met them, I had trouble telling them apart. That made me very interested in the whole idea of identical twins, and how some can also have a u … | Continue reading
This is the twenty-third part of a fiction serial, in 777 words. By midday on the day of the barbecue party, it was already very hot. Alan was painting the second bedroom, but it was getting stifling in there, so he opened the window wider. Almost immediately flies started to com … | Continue reading
Back in the 1970s, a new and different British band appeared. Elvis Costello and The Attractions had a unique sound, and a lead singer with a very different look who wrote some amazingly original songs. His real name is Declan MacManus, and he is still recording and perfoming now … | Continue reading
This is the twenty-second part of a fiction serial, in 800 words. Colin was far from impressed with Thailand so far. It was too humid, and when it wasn’t just humid it was raining cats and dogs and humid. The hotel was pretty good, but then considering how much he had paid for th … | Continue reading
When she died at the age of 27 in 1970, I already knew of Janis Joplin from her time as the lead singer of Big Brother and The Holding Company. Her raucous voice was ideally suited to Blues and Rock, and her pop-star lifestyle of alcohol and drugs was equally as famous as her voc … | Continue reading
So many kitchen gadgets turn out to be not worth the trouble. Most get put away somewhere, never to be used again. But every so often, one comes along that is worth its weight in gold, hence the reason I am featuring this one today. About a year ago, Julie spotted this defrosting … | Continue reading
This is the twenty-first part of a fiction serial, in 756 words. Two days before the barbecue party, Stan drove Grace to the hospital. The meeting with the consultant was brief, and he stuck to facts. “The truth is, Mrs Verney, your husband has no brain activity. He is neither un … | Continue reading
I found some more! Sold as ‘The Home On Wheels’. The ‘Arrow’ car. A very stylish American truck in a delapidated condition. An aerodynamic car towing a similar caravan. A General Motors aerodynamic concept car that could go for 78 miles on one gallon of petrol. A French touring c … | Continue reading
I found this simple graphic comparing the size of Earth to other planets and moons. | Continue reading
This true-life memoir written by an American former naval officer is tremendous value on Kindle at only 78p. For anyone interested in military history, and admirers of a relaxed writing style, it is highly recommended. | Continue reading
This is the twentieth part of a fiction serial, in 790 words. As June arrived, the weather got much hotter. Colin had packed his suitcase for Thailand, and was leaving in a few days. A piece of paper came through his letterbox, and he snorted as he read what was on it, before scr … | Continue reading
I thought of this song last week, and was amazed to discover that it is almost 40 years ago since it was released in 1984, and I bought the single. Sometimes, I genuinely forget just how old I am. The Kane Gang was a 3-piece band from the north-east of England. Their first album … | Continue reading
This is the nineteenth part of a fiction serial, in 770 words. According to the weather reports on the news, that May was one of the warmest on record. By the end of the month it was becoming almost impossible to buy a fan anywhere, and people were walking through the Close to go … | Continue reading
You may remember that I enjoy finding photos illustrating the changes in places over time. I found some more today. Lower Weston, part of the city of Bath in the west of England. Bristol, England. Paris, France. Dresden, Germany. Cologne, Germany. Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris. Rec … | Continue reading
I have been clean-shaven since the day I needed to shave in my teens. I have never understood why men grow facial hair, even though many of my friends have had beards in the past. But of course, if they think it looks good, each to their own. | Continue reading
This is the eighteenth part of a fiction serial, in 736 words. It was a few days before the police came to see Grace. She had omitted to tell them where she was staying, but they found her by knocking on doors in the Close and asking around. Dennis told them, it had to be … Conti … | Continue reading
Regular readers will know that I love Art Deco architecture. In fact, I love everything about Art Deco, including the wonderful vehicles. And trains. Motorcycles too. Even kids’ trikes were cool. And prams for babies were so stylish! As the saying goes, “They don’t make them like … | Continue reading
This is the seventeenth part of a fiction serial, in 776 words. While they were eating the fish and chips, it occurred to Grace that this was the first time for years that she had managed to have a conversation during dinner, and also the first time during that period that she ha … | Continue reading
This week I had good reason to be glad that I decided to buy a pair of prescription sunglasses when I had to get new glasses recently. Very cold days came with blue skies and piercing winter sun, hanging low in the sky. Attempting to drive into town, I couldn’t see a thing as I … … | Continue reading
This selection of photos from around the world made me feel happy. Despite the way that humans have abandoned everything from whole trains to one solitary shoe, Nature only needs time to reclaim anything. | Continue reading
This is the sixteenth part of a fiction serial, in 759 words. When they got back from the hospital, Jenny stopped Grace going to look at her ruined house. “Come in our house with me, you can put your fridge stuff in our fridge. I will make us all something to eat, Alan will be … … | Continue reading
I have never been to America, but I always had an idea that Texas was a very big state. So I looked it up online. Bigger than the UK and Ireland combined. As big as a huge chunk of Europe. Not that big compared to Australia, but still impressively large. | Continue reading
For almost 60 years, The Louis Tussaud House Of Wax was a feature of the Norfolk seaside resort of Great Yarmouth. Once social media was used to mock the poor quality of the exhibits, the failing museum achieved cult status for a while, with people travelling from all over the co … | Continue reading