A place to park those random thoughts, stolen images, hidden conversations and incoherent babble from beyond the wall of sleep. Odd bits of music and so-called worldly wisdom may creep in from time to time. Don't expect too much and you won't feel let down.
My research is incomplete but basically I'm just repeating something we all knew to be true in the 1970s. In fact the Groundhogs made an album all about the problems of pollution and sustained public apathy, it was called "Who Will Save the World?" We all understood the message then (well the album went to about No.19 in the charts) but as usual we failed to act. A Labour government was in power at the time but they were riven by their own internal problems and battles with the Trades Unions. The weather was mostly dull, the beer watery and that influenced attitudes.
When I was an optimist: In my own head I had assumed that Joni Mitchell would eventually become US President and that things would sort themselves out and there would be outbreaks of kindness and honesty everywhere. In the UK I also imagined Ian Dury would be PM and that politics might take on a more self effacing style of humour and attitude. Based on this imaginary evidence I think I understand why we are somewhat adrift at the moment and why music and media stars are a bit unreliable when it comes to attaining positions of political leadership.
That's my tired out feet at the bottom of the picture, supported by some surgical device pretending to be furniture. Because today was a moving day we feasted on fish and chips as is the local custom (I was taught never to begin a sentence with "because", this must be the first time I've done such an unspeakable thing since 1967). Now I almost feel free from the puritan curse of a dour Scottish education.
The SNP have a strategy but it's not clear, no matter what they say because they don't indulge in straight talking (OK maybe they're not so bad with Covid). They have become a closed shop, a machine and I'm done with that sort of thing. The rot began in 2014, it's not stopped and it will get worse. They are weak, distracted and mostly self serving, careers before country etc. Mr Rushdie puts in well enough.
I can't be bothered anymore. None of this really matters. 😕
While we slept they erased the known solar system and replaced it with an exact replica (apart from the fact that it's quite different). You may have experienced some mild discomfort or turbulence as this occurred. There are reports of injuries and damage to equipment. An official apology was published at the time but no one was ever named as being responsible for the turmoil.
Understanding this new media based universe will now become part of the normal school syllabus and curriculum so that a consistent view of this re-imagined reality can be upheld. The UK government fully supports this change of view and has described it as being in line with their own rapidly forming chaotic ideology.
Everybody lives somewhere but mostly we live in our minds. It all happens there. It happens there a lot more than it does in the real world. That's the power of the powerful mind. Books, films and plays have been written about this sort of thing and as I don't really know what I'm talking about here you might want to do your own research.
... and a boiler gone wonky. The universe is a serious place. There's pressure and there's not enough pressure. Not enough can mean the failure of the central heating system and oops, now you're caught out. The manufacturer's instructions are gobbledygook, the installer's tiny pamphlet, hidden in the hatch, is incomprehensible, you've no choice but to contact your virtual technical support team out there on YouTube. There's always an 11 minute video (but it'll ramble and be tough to follow), some South African bloke with a bad accent with intrusive background music or a 1:35 minute snappy alternative. Choose the one that gets to the point, you don't need travelogue with a wonky boiler. You just need to know what two tiny taps to turn to refill the pressure system and move that little dial back up to 1 Bar (1.5 Bar if you feel like taking the risk of a full on kitchen explosion). A tweak and fumble here and there. It's all over in a few seconds (?). The things fixed and I didn't even bother to like, comment or subscribe. I'm a bad person.
If you're interested in this little enterprise by all means make a contribution (details via DMs (Doc Martins)) or post a comment and my people will happily get in contact with your people, eventually.
Escaping the clutches of 2021 was never going to be easy, we all had to keep living or at least stay sane. That deed is done and gone. 2019 was troublesome too, in that year I massively over-blogged. I've no idea why, maybe something in the air, human bloodstream or water. Much of was dross but that's normal. So for 2021 I imposed a complex rationing system upon myself. It took skill and no small amount of discipline to adhere to it.
I decided I'd do one post a day, no more, no less. I didn't really think much about the quality mind you, perhaps that was my biggest, most fatal mistake in a career of mistakes. Maintaining good content isn't easy you know. Well I managed the daily target anyway, 100%, despite the clearly negative thoughts of my imaginary detractors. So it is finished. I proved that I can do a post a day, all year if I have to. As is necessary now a new phase beckons.
2022 is to be a different beast. Other strange threats, new opportunities and some other mumble-worthy stuff. 2022 and all that means very little. No daily post, no longer multiple posts, just posts "whenever" or "whatever", an occasional exercise, a place to park junk, nothing in particular, no pressure, no frequency. There may still be some plagiarism of course, nothing new there.
One simple question remains ... why am I posting this on January the 9th?
Daily dose of historical popular culture and intrigue: Rembrandt's "The Night Watch". It was originally given the working title "The Dark Phallus" because of an accidentally hidden bit of detail. The painting was commissioned by the then Pope, somebody somebody, at who's request the title was changed a number of times before settling with "Midnight Pope Hunt" which, after a Papal Bull was sacrificed, was renamed with the title that we all know it by today. Rembrandt's ghost was very unhappy about the situation and remains so to this day. The watch featured in the piece is a primitive Rolex Submariner Oyster. When I say featured I mean it's on the wrist of the fourth soldier on the left. An early example of discrete product placement.
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