‘Mankind Limited’

This book  ⇑⇑⇑ should be a movie. Somewhere in Hollywood right now there are actors waiting for their agents to deliver this story in script format to them. The makings of all action-packed adventure films is here. I can see the film in my mind’s eye.

But this one is different.

It’s not fast-paced for the thrill of it alone. It needs to be to get the message across. Mankind could be on the threshold of just such a future. Time is racing.

This one could be us.

Maybe a few years down the line yet, maybe already almost there in some similar format. Change a few details. Replace one group for another. Look behind the motives in politics and corporations. Stretch the reality just a little. Ask ourselves questions looking through the light of a different lens.

It feels like us, it acts like us, it may very well come to be.

It could be The Secret we all hold and may one day need.

The future may be closer than we think.

It only takes a small leap of imagination to take us from where we are now to Mankind Limited.

Scott Bailey is a writer I follow here on WordPress.

I downloaded his book a few weeks ago after reading an excerpt from it on his blog. It wasn’t until this week that I finally had the chance to read the book.  I like a good action-packed adventure as much as the next one but I liked, even more, what Scott communicated in the story.

I believe there is more to follow and I’ll be waiting. If we have time and I’m still aware…

 

Scott’s book is available through Amazon.

His blog can be found here.

 

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Parking Posteriors, Pimping Posts, Pummelling Penmanship

I’ve been prevaricating and procrastinating like a politician on Question Time for these first few days of January. Promises to myself made at the end of Nanowrimo being pushed back till proper work week resumes. I know. Excuses.

But I’ve got loads of them.

The house has been full one way and another, cooking up a storm, visiting, blah, blah, Christmas, Ne’erday. Ask, I’ll give you a list.

But school starts back tomorrow and I hate breaking a promise, even one made to myself. Apart from which, I’d just give myself a hard time. And I don’t like doing that either.

So, postponements, procrastinations and other perambulations on the putting off front are now being pushed to the back of the cupboard along with the rest of my chocolate stash and tomorrow begins the edit. Shitting myself somewhat that I might look at the fifty-two thousand words I wrote during November and think, ‘What a load of auld bollocks that is!’

But I won’t know till I look again and I haven’t even peeped at it since finishing the count.

All this to say, I’m gonna be a good girl, park my posterior on the seat, pour a cuppa and peruse the pages (fond of P today!)

I’d like to extend an invitation, to any and all interested parties, to be my guest on this here blog that will otherwise, undoubtedly, suffer neglect in my self-enforced peregrinations (feckin’ P, let me be!) into pimping, pummeling and promoting the publishable word. (I give in. It’s a P day, obviously).

I have, on file, several guest posts pending

You might want to blog one of your previous posts (you know the ones that nobody goes back to, from the early days. In my case, I wouldn’t really want to, but you might).

Anyhow, this evening is the last of the totally chilled ones (did finally get there over Christmas and New Year. Lock the doors and pretend you’re not in works so well. Kidding! nearly…)

So, if you have half a mind to guest – in fact, particularly if you have half a mind – you’ll fit very well here. Kidding then too. Really!

I’ve kept access to all my previous guests – you know who you are. But, for those who don’t, see the side bar. Down there, over a bit, to the right. Aye, there. A grand job they did of keeping this little portion of WordPress going. My eternal gratitude to them.

Go on, have a look in your files, past posts, classics that no bugger, or very few, got to view and have at it. If you don’t, I will feel compelled to come in here daily and torment the life out of you with prehistoric posts of mine that deserve to be relegated to the cupboard with my chocolate. Shutit! I was learning. I still am. This doesn’t sound like any invitation I’ve read before.

Now, in the interests of honesty, highly valued by me, though – in the interests of honesty – not always managed, I’ll probably be in and out, ready to press publish at any given time. It’s a problem. I blame my addictive personality. With this in mind, I thought I’d keep the weekends free for me. I like free weekends. They’re sort of full of promise but can be used to do sod all if the humph comes upon one. Comes upon one here fairly regularly but not as often as one’d like. (Gawd, how does she manage to talk like that? Ma’am. Curtsey, grovel, tugging me forelock, not being in the least facetious. Much.)

Soooo, the first and only hauf of the evening has just been poured for me by my nearest and dearest – I like a well-trained man! No kidding! Well, maybe a bit because, well, never mind because…

Should you care to pimp past posts (or new ones. I’m easy. Watchit!) while I park my posterior and pummel past penmanship, you are cordially invited to do so.

Amen. 🙂

Pew. Phew! Forgot where I was there. 😉

 

Awwww, I’m wasted

Wonderful Team Membership Award

Actually, I was slightly.

Yesterday’s afternoon tea with champagne started off beautifully by hubby and I being too early for the occasion. Having organised child care,

‘You, 15year old and 18 year old, watch and monitor six and eleven year old.’ Sorted.

One reasonably short train journey later and husband and I were in the centre of Glasgow.

Time to redeem the voucher from last year’s wedding anniversary. Being too early and it being a surprisingly, rare sunny day we toddled off to a lovely outdoor café to partake of a cold one. One pint of Tennents for hubby and a bottle of Bud for me and I was feeling quite mellow. This is what happens when you partake of alcohol at 1pm and have breakfasted on Nescafe and cigarettes. He, at least, had had his porridge. So, shoot me, I’m trying.

We were received at said café with a warm hug from a special friend of my 20 year old daughter’s. Small world.

Nearing two o’clock we ventured to the Corinthian Club. (My one and only time in this club previously was when I had been called for jury service. It used to be the Sheriff Court. Justice now measured out in alcohol and casino chips!)

A lovely glass of chilled champagne was presented to us, followed by a three tier plate of sandwiches and cakes. No, we did not – could not – eat them all. I tried but my threshold has obviously diminished somewhat from a previous afternoon tea with my mother where I am sure I shamed myself and her by consuming practically everything on all three tiers. I can’t resist meringues. Coffee accompanied the platter and was enjoyed, although not as much as the champagne which, by now, was well-scoffed.

A return journey home saw us passing our local. Only, we didn’t pass. We thought, ‘Let’s be hung for a sheep,’ and entered to find some old friends gathered. These people obviously have a social life when I’m not there. How unfair is that?

The Wimbledon tennis final was on and many patrons were quite engrossed. I’m afraid I may have disturbed them by talking. Well, who goes to a pub and watches TV? We had a grand old natter and two more beers.

And I felt ever so slightly wasted.

Not a lot. Just a bit.

We were urged to remain but couldn’t. A text from my 20 year old to request a barbecue could not be ignored. Now that she is in a flat, I don’t see as much of her as I would like. I miss her. No, twenty years was not enough. Maybe she’s just using me for the garden but I can live with that. Easy.

I had a fab day.  But the real reason I was wasted had nothing to do with alcohol.

I checked my phone on the train on the way home and I had a few e-mails. One was from http://belsbror.wordpress.com/2013/07/06/community/.

It said I had a ‘Wonderful Team Membership Award’.

Well, the other day, I got a ‘One Lovely Blog Award’ and now I receive a team award and it’s wonderful.

So, I’m pathetic and in need of huge doses of approbation.

But, for team membership? Seriously?

You’ve obviously never seen me play netball and duck as the ball headed in my general direction. You’ve obviously never been in one of our staff meetings where, ‘I’m sorry, but I just have to say,’ too often escapes my sellotaped lips. (It takes something stronger than sellotape, I assure you.)

Anyway, I don’t care. I got another award and I’m chuffed. Like your man who nominated me says, ‘Fellowship.’ And, I have to admit, that since I joined this lovely community of bloggers, this is exactly what I feel.

We’re all talking on paper, we’re all reaching out in some way, we all have our ideas. We may not always agree. But. And it’s an important but. I feel the connection and I know I am already on the way to making friends whose faces are not always known to me but whose hearts are on their sleeves and whose honesty and integrity shine through.

There’s one below that is going to be really pissed at me because it means more homework. But, I can’t not nominate her. She has already fulfilled all team membership requirements in her life by being there as part of the team in her work with people who hurt.

She was there for me when I was having my first week of school holiday rant. (Can’t switch off, unload, move on.)

So, my Whispering Insights friend. Tig. You’re it.

1. http://tracesofthesoul.wordpress.com/category/whispering-reflections/

I don’t know if this blogger will appreciate this. He’s a bit of a maverick. But, he has this huge following, so he I think he’s something of a team leader. Read his posts, if you haven’t already and you’ll see what I mean.

2. http://aopinionatedman.com/2013/07/07/a-few-quick-things/

You might not want it, OM, but you’ve got it. So there.

3. http://butterflysand.com/more-stuff/

My kind of woman.

4.   http://valleygirlgonecountry.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/we-need-a-bigger-pool/

5. http://reowr.wordpress.com/2013/07/01/the-hermit/

6. http://mummyflyingsolo.com/2013/07/08/i-won-that-damn-blog-competition-so-now-im-published/

7. http://geosans.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/blind-faith/

8. http://mythoughtsonapage.com/2013/07/07/ireland-if-only-you-knew-what-my-family-has-done-for-you/

9.   http://tworiversblog.com/2013/07/08/the-fathers-legacy-7813/

10.   http://howtoruinatoddlersday.wordpress.com/

11. http://journeytothesunblog.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/sunshine-girl/

12. http://suzie81.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/a-wonderful-wimbledon-weekend/comment-page-1/#comment-2280

13. http://thingsthatgobumpinmymind.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/popping-the-bubble/

14. http://poetryonaroll.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/bitterness-battle/

So, these are my fourteen nominees. I follow a fair number of people and it was not an easy task to select only fourteen. (But, you’re right, WI. It is a lot of homework. And I thought I was on holiday!)

It may be too time-consuming for you to browse and select your fourteen. Even so, I would like you all to accept the Wonderful Team Membership Award as testimony to what you are doing with your lives and your blogs.

God bless.x

Thank you Vanilla Housewife for this lovely award.

Thank you Vanilla Housewife for this lovely award.

I knew there was a catch!

(Right-click image, save as jpeg in Pictures folder. Check that it’s in Pictures folder. Check.

Open new Word Document. )

Share seven things about me. (Are you sure you want to know?)

1. I hate teaching symmetry if it has more than two lines. I go cross-eyed and get confused.
2. When my waters broke with my eldest, it was green and for a brief moment I thought I was having an alien. (There is, actually, an explanation but I won’t go into it here).
3. I weigh more than my husband. He’s a running fanatic so that’s alright, though. Pass me a Mars Bar.
4. If I’ve had too much to drink my children ask, ‘Have you got sweaty ankles.’ Again, I won’t elaborate. (Might post on it one day. Might not.)
5. I have a stationery fetish. Nothing sexual. I love browsing stationery shops. I get all excited and enthusiastic about pens and lovely paper.
6. I still love my husband to pieces. And sometimes, when he’s not looking, I check him out.
7. I taught in Greece for a year and can still speak a bit. (See number 4. More fluent when lubricated.)

(Save document while having a think about random things.)

1. I snore. (I can feel a post coming on about that one.)
2. I sing. (Quite well, actually!)
3. I enjoy dancing in the living-room with my kids.
4. My favourite flowers are carnations.
5. I still have a jotter from primary school.
6. I don’t like killing insects. They’re squishy and crunchy. Euck!
7. I trained to be a nurse for six months, then checked out several convents, then got married and had seven kids. Funny old life, eh?

Now for the fun bit.

My nominees, in no particular order, as they say, are:-

1     http://lessonsfrommydaughter.me/

2    http://tracesofthesoul.wordpress.com/

3       http://suzie81.wordpress.com/

4       http://miketerrill.wordpress.com/

5       http://imightbetheproblem.com/

6       http://littlegirlstory.wordpress.com/

7       http://thepolarzone.wordpress.com/

I don’t want to colour anyone’s judgement about the above bloggers. Suffice to say, I admire all of them and am humbled by many of them.  They have all had me close to tears for one reason or another.

(Now, posting on other people’s blogs? Does that mean I sort of sabotage their page? Can you do that? Or do I just post it on mine? Or do I make a comment on their page? This is tricky. It’s nearly as cross-eyed inducing as teaching symmetry. Have I missed a ‘how-to’ page somewhere on WordPress? If the Blog police come and get me I’ll be looking for revenge.)

(Posted it, made an arse of two of the links, changed them, just about to check them.)

(OK, sorted. Phew! Now to go and infiltrate the nominees’ blogs. Camouflage? Check. Running shoes? Check. Wish me luck.)

(Mission accomplished.)

Thanks again Vanilla Housewife. I know you said I didn’t HAVE to do all this but it was kinda fun.x

Sharing

I’ve had a great two days doing nothing much. Sat on my bum for most of them and browsed this site. Checked out loads of blogs and I am in awe at the variety and heartfelt shares. I feel as if I have met people I would never otherwise have met just by being here.

Sometimes, my life is so busy with family and work I don’t take the time to ‘stop and stare’. The nothing much, as it turns out, has been pretty something. Thanks.x