Here I am at the edge

 Food Porn 2 I do not enjoy walnuts, dates, or figs, but I do enjoy walnut and date cake. Strange. but true, the incident I am about to tell di d happen, and to this day my wife and I have no reason for it; we have a couple of possible reasons but nothing definite. We had bought some chopped walnuts dipped in honey and a yogurt mix; this was something we had done several times before with no unbeknown effects, but this was not the case this evening. On the night in question, I added the nutty mix, as usual, and then the unexpected happened; for some reason, there was a chemical reaction and the yogurt exploded, covering both of us and the wall behind us in the nutty goo.  All we could do was sit and laugh.

 I saw it coming Several years ago, I pointed out an invasion by Islam followers across Europe , at the time either people didn't believe me, or didn't want to believe it was happening. The scourge is spreading' London has a Muslim Lord Mayor , the SNP now has a Muslim leader, surely that is a contradiction in terms, and the UK has a Muslim Prime Minister . Somebody, at the time, asked why are they coming to Europe and not going to Africa which is a hot country similar to where they lived? What I said then is as true today, "you cannot give to Allah, what Allah already has." Most of North Africa is Muslim. The Muslims go about westerners not being clean as we don't wash our hands several times a day. Yet, I knew several ladies who were carers who refused to clean for Muslim men because they didn't clean themselves after going to the toilet, and had fasces up their backs. Why does Pakistan hate India? This goes back to the partition of India in 1947 wh

 No easy choice It's the dying seconds of the game, and your team is down by one point. You have the ball after a last-minute touchdown, as QB you have a choice of options. Option 1 - Kick the Field goal to tie the game, and play the extra time. Option 2 - Try a trick play for two points to win the game. Both have advantages and disadvantages. While the FG is an easy point, it will force the team to play an extra quarter, and tired men make mistakes. The trick play could win the game if, big if, it works. Downers If you tie the game, you are faced with a double-bind. If you kick, you need to keep the offense from your 40-yard-line to lessen the opportunity for an FG to the opposition. If you receive, the choice is harder, you need to get to the opposition's 40-yard line to give your kicker the best chance of kicking the winning FG. Either choice will force the defense to use pass coverage to lower the chance of long gains, and with men already tired from a hard game, the risk o

 A new concept While Forgestriker was selling well, I had the idea for another sci-fi series with the same characters, they would be chasing a rogue ship that has been running wild with its crew dead. The craft was running on the telekinetic energies of the dead crew. I also had the idea of writing a dragon -based fantasy series; I did start several stories with dragons, but as sales died off for my eBooks , I dropped this idea. I did sell a couple of dragon stories on Amazon , but because of their returns policy; before I could see the benefit -other than a slight rise in the ratings - they had been sent back.

 The Alanist Gold Rush The image above comes from the height of popularity for my Science Fiction series - Forgestriker - in its long past heyday, I had the conceptual thought of putting the seven stories, together with three unwritten stories into one book, but I shelved the plan as the last three books in the series never sold well. More ebook sales may appear after I added links to my blog , but I am not holding my breath.

  Ebook sales rise via Apple sales This short story is one of three which have sold today via Apple books. The ebook sales for today make the day my best for sales in several months. The short story of the ebook is the story is about a family plagued by immortality , and the struggles two brothers encounter as they quarrel about who is correct. I don't know about you, but I wouldn't like to be immortal.

  A Social Historian I see my role as a writer as a social historian unless I am writing a short story . How do I see the role? Reading my blog, you'll notice many posts that relate past events to current events. That is how I see my role. An excellent example of this style of writing concerns Brexit , in several posts, I pointed out that the UK has been holding up the economy of Germany in the EU . I also pointed out that both the UK and the USA have funded Germany for over a century to avoid the spread of Communism to the state. The recent posts about Egypt , Crete , and the possibility of fake items relating to archeology  in museums are comments made from viewing the evidence put before me in several documentaries. True, it is my opinion, but this is based on the evidence told to me during a documentary . When I write   fiction , some of which have an element of history involved, I try as far as possible not to press my opinions in these short stories . In these cases, I

 Paid for doing nothing Most people would have missed the news that Mark Zuckerberg had to lay off hundreds of people working for him, last week, as his Metaverse had failed. There were many reasons, one of the main ones is not everyone wishes to, or can afford to, play Virtual Reality games. One promoter said she was paid over $19,00 a month for doing nothing. Things have taken ANOTHER bad turn for Zuckerberg, his company has been hit with a record-breaking fine of $1,3 billion fine.

 A Financial Blackhole With news that Deutsche Bank is on the verge of folding, Europe , and the world needs to answer one question of finance . The question was raised by Senator Elizabeth Warren during the last US election , are banks too big to fail? If you answer, yes, this means pouring money into a country, as the FIM , has been doing with Mexico . In the hope that one day the country will be able to repay its debts; this works the same way as pouring water down a drain in the hope of blocking the drain and filling a basin.

 Who'd be a photographer? Yes, who would be a photographer ? The names of the celebrities roll off your tongue like ice changing into the water on a stove, Ant & Dec , Lorraine , Oprah , Jay Leno , Letterman , and The Kardashians . The list grows almost daily, but can you name one of the camera crew who films the shows? I doubt it. It is to these people who toil, often in hazardous conditions, remember when you watch a face shot the photographer is ahead of the celebrity you are watching. I dedicate my award-winning  series (shown here). The hero of my short story series left a glittering career to photograph real people.

  How an accident can change your life During the making of a film in  India  in 1943, actress  Lalita Pawar  suffered an injury which was to be the turning point of her 70-year career in the movies. In the film  Jung-E-Azadi,   her co-star was to slap her. Being a new actor, he misjudged his power and left Lalita with a paralyzed nerve on the left of her face and a ruptured vein in her left eye. After three years in surgery, she returned to the screen, this time, her parts were not the leading lady but those of maternal characters; one of her most noted performances was as a witch.

  An Anthology Writer Views on writing in an anthology vary as much as the writers do. Some people say it gives a writer more exposure, and this is true, but I have written in several volumes and they have not increased my sales. On another side of the coin, I did consider putting several of my ghost story selection in an anthology. The irony here is my early reputation as a writer is based on my ability to write chilling ghost stories , none of which have sold. As one person wrote, "everyone loves your work, until they have to buy it."

  Self-Published Author One of the largest scam projects in the world of publishing is Vanity Publishing . In terms you can relate to this scam works this way. A "publisher" will contact you with a request to publish your book, being a writer this will get your blood rushing until you read the small print. This firm will take out an option on a second book if the first book is a success. Who pays for the publishing cost of the first book? You do. So, you publish a book that is a success , why should you as a self-published author take out an option which gives credit for a second book to people who had no faith in your ability?

  Worship of a bestselling writer On the subject of cult worship , I was considering starting The Alanist Cult . The premise of the cult is to value my ability as an award-winning writer .  The worshippers can join the group by buying some of my ebook selections from either Draft2Digital https://www.draft2digital.com/book/   or Amazon  https://author.amazon.com/books . Buy your copy, and send me a blog comment to say what you bought. Selfish, I hear you say, and you're right, there again aren't most cults started to share the beliefs of one person. After following the advice of my friend in Seattle, and adding direct links to my book pages, I sold two more non science fiction ebooks. One of which is a romance that took me two years to complete.

  How to stop masturbation People have joined many cults  over the years most of the cults have dubious beliefs, to say the least.  One of the cults that come closest to being classed as mad is one cult that sprung up in Boston , USA .  The object of the cult was to stop people from  masturbating, as it was considered sinful. How could you achieve this? By eating crackers is the proposed theory, crazy or just plain loco? Of course, you had to eat a certain brand, not any brand would suffice; the brand suggested was a brand the cult leader worked for. Mad as it appears, there is a logic to it; to this day there is nothing more off-putting than finding biscuits in your bed to dampen your ardor. In those days, people didn't have cars, so they could go to the beach; we know how sand gets everywhere - even in your sandwich box.

 A Double Murder in India I was watching a true crime series on YouTube today with my wife when the name of the family involved hit a nerve. The Talvar double murder  occurred in India in 2008 and is still a hot debate to this day. I will discuss this item by relating the facts as I see them, while not expressing my views until the end; after that, I will leave the verdict to my readers. The main reason for suspecting the parents is that at the time of the killings, there were four people in the house, and two were now dead. The suspect pool for this case is virtually non-existent. The murder concerns two people, a servant, and a 16-year-old girl. From the start, the public and press attacked the police for botching up the case, which they did. But, the first attempt the police had to search the premises was unsuccessful because, rather than contact the police, the parents phoned family and friends, it was one of the friends NOT the parents who contacted the police, (strange).  By the

 A Close Encounter of the Furred kind This week, I had an experience that will stay with me for the rest of my life. I had a face-to-face encounter, even if it was a few meters apart, with a fox .  What I saw was not the vicious killer of cats and dogs the hunting fraternity says they are, all I saw was a poor animal scared as he tried to beg for scraps of food to feed his family. Years ago, during a harsh winter, we lost one of our cat family. at the time, I put it down to a fox killer, though I didn't blame the fox as he had a family to feed. I now think what killed my cat was the teenager who callously shot her with an air rifle. During her last weeks, when she breathed she exhaled blood from an injury to her nose. This injury, along with the harshness of the winter was probably the cause of her death; allow the fox did was clean the body up. Having seen a fox close, I know for sure what I have always thought is true, they are NOT killers, with their small muzzles they have no j

 Supercross For a long time, I have had a passion for motorcycle racing , whether TT , Isle of Man , British Superbike , motocross , or World   Superbike . The only racing, if you can call it racing, I dislike is the US Supercross series. This is not a real race, as I see it, as the "races" are no more than a series of man-made jumps. I much prefer racing in Europe where the courses are natural, and riders get the opportunity to race, not just perform stunts. The leading rider here is the late Malcolm Davis riding a Bultaco , being chased by Mick Church riding an AJS , one of the top Bristol riders during a meeting in the Somerset area during the 70s. When he began Mal Davis like many riders rode a British bike.

 A time of Darkness A little-known aspect in the history of my award -winning series ebook  is that four years before the book earned its award I was ready to kill its hero, Mark Elijah Johnson.  At the time, I was writing the series for three ladies I was in contact with on Facebook  who loved the weekly episodes. That weekend, I had gone to meet an online friend for the weekend, but the date was nothing short of a disaster. On my way back from Bath , I decided to end the series with a heroic battle that Mark would lose. On my arrival back in Bristol , I sat at my laptop for hours staring at the blank screen, unable to type a word. My friends said that was a sign the series should go on, which it did until the end of the second book.  I started to write book 3, I had two concepts ongoing when I stopped the idea. One idea was a mix of H.P. Lovecraft meets Silent Hill with Mark, and his friend Phil being in the same building but in different realities, and the other was more like The Wi

A change in my sleep patterns  For several reasons, I rarely have a full night's sleep, these days my pattern is dominated by a series of short power naps. I rarely sleep more than three hours at a time, the main cause for my insomnia is the after-effect of staying up during the 70s and 80s to listen to the cricket from Australia , and the West Indies . In recent years, family issues have taken a toll on my sleep.

 Shraddha Kapoor In some ways, you have to feel sorry for Shraddha Kapoor ; her next role is that of Nagin , the female snake enchantress from the movie of 1956. This role was made famous by her her aunt, the "Queen of Bollywood," Sridevi . While Shraddha may be an attractive lady, she will never come close to her aunt; either in star ability, or acting ability. This month, I started on a quest to make an unbiased choice on who I think is best in the role. During the quest, I have found several versions of the film I didn't realize existed. I have not decided on the best, but along with most of the viewers on IMDB , many of whom are Indian judging by the style of rating musicals highly. We agree, the worst by a long way is the new version, then again who would have considered changing a very good film into a series lasting seven series?

  Who would gave thought I'd have a growing selection of Bollywood films? Years ago, I would not have considered buying Bollywood films; at the time to me, movies from India meant massive musicals with lots of dancers. I think that opinion would be the general view of films by people from the USA , and Europe during the 70s and 80s. I have learned in the last year there is a great pool of talent in the sub-continent, and despite the films being dominated by the Kapoor family, and several regional languages each with its own sub-cultural films the cinema of India is thriving.

  Nuclear War It has been my belief that the world will not be involved in a nuclear war , unlike the followers of Jeremy Corbyn who see Russia as a threat to world peace; I never have since my days in the Royal Air Force in the 80s. If any country starts a war that nobody wins, it will be Iraq , Syria , or Iran . After the Bikini Atoll tests it was shown that a nuclear explosion poisons everything. Victory is gained by taking over the lands of the defeated, but if that land has been poisoned you gain nothing. Then, there is also the high risk that your fallout could kill your people when the wind changes. The most likely people to start a war of this nature is a country with nothing to lose, and only wishes to destroy - ISIS . The arms race is a case of not wanting to be seen as weak by being left out; India won't sign the peace treaty as they fear Pakistan will attack, and that is the case for all eight countries with Nuclear Power who have not signed. Since first Chornobyl ,

  The Life of a Chineses Emperor The premise of the popular 1900s song is about a lady who married for money, not love.  The meaning is that you can have more money than you can imagine, but still be unhappy. The song could also be applied to the lives of Chinese concubines, young ladies who the Emperor's mother saw unfit to be his wife, but as they had crossed into the Forbidden City they were trapped. They had all they could wish for but the freedom to go outside the walls of their gilded cage. I would not have wished to have been an Emperor; your guards are men you have castrated to be loyal to you - they have nothing to lose by turning on you - add to that you created a minor revolt by condemning young ladies to a life with no freedom because your mother didn't see them fit to be your life. I would spend my time watching my back for a revolution .

 Myths of Crete According to experts in the history of Crete , and Minoan culture, this plate shows a man balancing on the back of a bull, what if they are wrong? The plate could be depicting the bull tossing the man over his head, and the "balancing" is just the man stretching his arms. Depiction of a scene depends on how you view the article unless you have proof that cannot be disputed. All I see is a man on a bull, whether he's balancing or being thrown I will leave up to your perception of the scene.

 It IS a Fake One of the biggest scandals in the world of archeology centers around the "supposed" bust of Nefertiti  which sits in the Berlin museum.  Speaking as a layman with limited knowledge, in my opinion, I see it as a fake for the following reasons. In over 100 years since it was "found" on the floor of a sculptor, no other image of the queen has been located.  Like the Phaistos disc , the icon was found undamaged after a five-foot fall onto hardened sand, despite landing face down. One of the two researchers who told papers it is a fake, suddenly changed his mind, why? He was appointed the head of the Egyptology Department of the museum that holds the statue - what better way to silence an opponent than make them head curator in charge of the item. All that can be said is it was made from stone, and covered in plaster, and neither can be dated as yet. The paints and clay used "are similar" to those from the area. The main thing against the bust

 Is the price worth the gain? I have just watched the film Lin e of Control: Kargil War ; again it raises the question in my mind is the price you pay worth the gain you get? From a military standpoint, in this case, the answer is yes. The Indian Army had to retake the point on National Highway 1 to protect the people in Kashmir from the incursions by Pakistan . The victory cost the lives of over 500 soldiers. The main criterion for victory is to achieve your aim. During World War 2 , many people thought Tito's aim was to rid Yugoslavia of German troops, which was a secondary aim of his planned attacks. The main aim was to free the wounded soldiers in a hospital held by the Germans. His victory was doubled as he achieved both his primary goal and his secondary aim. No matter what your aim is there is only one winner in any war; they are people who make the guns, bullets, and bombs that kill and maim.  As one mother said, "Too many young men have died fighting battles for old

 It IS a Fake The island of Crete is associated with the Minoan civilization, but it is also the home of one of the great hoaxes of the 20th century -    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phaistos_Disc  - in my opinion. Why do I think it is fake when many educated people consider it as authentic? Disregarding the fact the finder of the disc was a friend of Luigi Pernier , a man known with his son to be associated with other forged items. The plate was "supposedly" found beneath an arch after an earthquake despite falling from over 10 feet the clay plate is undamaged. The item is perfectly circular with a flat base, indicating it was made on a potter's wheel. Since its "discovery" in 1908, experts in the Minoan civilization have studied the plate, and have not been able to decipher the writing or pictures on the disc. Then, despite many requests, the government in Crete keeps denying having the plate dated by reliable scientific means, which could substantiate the