Lundi limerick #79

Charlie the clown came from Zelah

he was peculiar fella

His nose was so big

he looked like a pig

and his eyes were a very deep yella

 

Zelah is a village in Cornwall, England, approximately 5 miles (8 kilometres) north of Truro. Zelah is the largest settlement in the civil parish of St Allen. The parish population in the 2001 census was 435.

In picking this village, at random, I discovered a strange happenstance.

Happenstance is, I think, my favourite word. Life is full of them, and I always delight in finding, encountering, and living through them…….Anyway, back to the happenstance.

 

E R Kelly’s Directory of Cornwall lists two public houses in the village in the 1883 entry and shows on the map both The Hawkins Arms – licensee Mr John Borlase and just behind to the east the Half-Moon Public House – licensee John Jose.

Now, I live in a small town which boasts a pub called the Sir John Borlase Warren, named after Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren,1st Baronet GCB GCH PC (2 September 1753 – 27 February 1822) who was a British Royal Navy officer, diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1807. He was born in this town.

Whether the two were related, I have no idea, but it does seem a rather strange happenstance, and that makes me very happy!

I am easily pleased.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Song Lyric Sunday 24/11/2019 – Bounty /Desert /Eat /Feast /Food /Hungry /Turkey

Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday and gives us the chance to share lots of familiar, and some not so familiar, songs.

If you fancy sharing one of your favourites you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.

I am totally cheating this week in that this is an instrumental video, it is NOT A SONG, and there are NO LYRICS. However, it is the end music to the film “Mutiny on the Bounty” from 1984, so it sort of fits the bill.

It really is great music, in the very recognisable form of Vangelis, although, in this video, sequenced with sonar and tyros 3 and performed by Albertvvl.

I hope you enjoy it.

 

Also, below, is the Opening music

 

Song Lyric Sunday 06/10/2019 – Bus /Truck /Lorry

Thank you to Jim Adams, who hosts Song Lyric Sunday and gives us the chance to share lots of familiar, and some not so familiar, songs.

If you fancy sharing one of your favourite songs you can find out how to participate, and also listen to all the great entries, here.

This week, for a complete change, I searched for a song that I had never heard before, that was outside of my normal choice of music, but one that fitted the bill for the prompt.

I came up with a song from Joe Nichols seventh studio album, It’s All Good,  released in November 2011.

The song tells a sad tale of a man who has lost his ride home, his chance of a romantic trip on a boat, and his girlfriend. All in all he’s having a pretty bad day, and it doesn’t look as though it’s going to get any better!

 

 

No Truck, No Boat, No Girl

Joe Nichols

Sun-burned and wonderin’, how I wound up here
Edge of a dock, one flip flop, half of a six-pack of beer
Seems like yesterday I was sittin’ on top of the world
And I watched it all just drive away
No truck, no boat, no girl.

Layin’ out there on that water, is where we ought to be
Instead I’m stuck with no ride home and no you here with me
Seems like yesterday I was sittin’ on top of the world
All it takes is one mistake,
No truck, no boat, no girl.

If I could I’d drive a line and catch a bite to eat
Put my zip-code in my tackle box there behind the seat

The water’s turnin’ smooth as glass, the sun is goin’ down
A red seagull’s blowin’ by makin’ one last lap around
Seems like yesterday I was sittin’ on top of the world
I’m just bobbin’ in the wake
No truck, no boat, no girl.

Seems like yesterday I was sittin’ on top of the world
Man ain’t meant to live this way
No truck, no boat, no girl.
Some things just can’t be replaced
No truck, no boat, no girl.

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Adam Wright / Jay Knowles

No Truck, No Boat, No Girl lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Peermusic Publishing, Words & Music A Div Of Big Deal Music LLC

Twittering Tales # 147 – 30 July 2019

It’s time again, for Kat Myrman’s wonderful challenge, to write a story, inspired by her picture prompt, in 280 characters or fewer.

Here is this week’s prompt and my contribution.

Check out all the fabulously creative entries here and, if you’ve never had a go, why not try a story of your own? You may surprise yourself!

Photo by enriquelopezgarre at Pixabay.com

I had difficulty this week in coming up with a tale that I was happy with. In the course of trying, I discovered that  a coarse sand grain may have a diameter of 1/20th of an inch. A first-order approximation of the number of grains of sand in one cubic inch (assuming cubic arrangement, spherical grains, uniformly sized) would be 20 x 20 x 20, or 8,000.

I am still managing to learn new things, even at my vast age! Use this information wisely folks.

Instead of a tale I imagined all of the difficulties of keeping the family happy, and entertained, on a crowded beach.

Happy holiday

Lots of people twittering

most of them are littering

beach and ocean too

surely that’s not you

 

angry folk are bickering

bullies nasty snickering

what are we to do

what is that to you?

 

Mums and Dads with separate lives

wonder then that love survives

a rather dismal view

it’s really up to you

(280 characters)

Seventy Five Years In The Passing: A D-Day Tribute — Gloria Smud

This needs no introduction whatsoever, other than to say what a wonderful tribute it is.

Seventy Five Years In The Passing..A D-Day Tribute. Seventy five years in the passing, The 6th of June; brave troops amassing. Nobody knew how countless would pay, For saving our souls that proud D-Day. From hillsides, valleys, towns & moors, They set off, leaving British shores. A rendezvous of military purpose, They called it Piccadilly…

via Seventy Five Years In The Passing: A D-Day Tribute — Gloria Smud

My Life #26 – St Kilda – Island on the edge of the world.

Anyone who saunters through my blog will very soon find that I was, for over 28 years, an Army man, a soldier, a squaddie!

This involved living in all sorts of weird places, in peculiar circumstances, and doing all sorts of things that the average joe doesn’t get to experience.

One of the places I lived was on the remote island of Hirta, in the archipelago of St Kilda. In all I spent over 8 months there, normally on a rotational basis of 6 weeks on, 12 weeks off. You can read a little about it here, and here.

During my time there I don’t think that I ever experienced the superb 4 day block of good weather that Angus Mackie and his group of kayakers did for their trip that is shown here.

This post is not about me but it does show a place that is dear to my heart, and to anyone who has ever been lucky enough to experience it.

Just as anyone who has experienced a true desert will know  what “desert fever” feels like, those who’ve been to Kilda will be forever drawn back there, even if it is only in memories!

This expedition report is rather lengthy, and will be hastily skipped through by some, but for a few it will be of great interest. The link at the bottom will take you to a marvellous set of photos and videos. It takes a while to load as they are high resolution, and lots of interactive 360˚ shots. I hope you have time to enjoy them.

A link to a newly updated blog post of “A Superlative St Kilda Sea Kayaking Expedition with Skyak Adventures.”

St Kilda is a place of superlatives!

The remote island archipelago of St Kilda lies some 40 miles west of the Outer Hebrides and not only is it a UNESCO World Heritage Site but it has the highest sea cliffs in the UK, the largest seabird colony in northern Europe and a quarter of the world’s gannet population.

It’s also an amazing place for sea kayaking…!!

 

I’m Angus Mackie, a professional forester and photographer, based just north of Inverness on the beautiful Black Isle.  I’m on the North Coast 500 and am well placed to discover most of the Highlands.  The iconic scenery of Glen Affric and the Cairngorms are close by whilst many of the wild and dramatic locations on the west coast are within easy reach.

Mountains, landscapes, coastlines….  As a landscape and panoramic photographer who specialises in 360° photography, I enjoy exploring Scotland and its wild and remote places and have discovered some of the best photography locations in the Highlands over the last 35 years of living up here.  With a broad and wide ranging knowledge of the Highlands, I still enjoy finding new locations and fresh perspectives for my photography.  The use of natural light to capture stunning scenery at spectacular locations is very much a key factor for my photography.

I’m a qualified Summer Mountain Leader, a Sea Kayak Leader and a UKCC Level 2 Sea Kayaking coach, with many years experience of leading and guiding.  I am also a longstanding member of Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team.

Copyright © 2018 Scotland360° and Angus Mackie.

https://www.scotland360.co.uk/Blog_St_Kilda_July_2014.html?fbclid=IwAR0jolFavOHKug8o9RkHNk_oxkkAcyjGYtSI-heTlQk7dehf9o-Xyo-xans

Lundi limerick #19

A shrimp who was sailing the seas

had terrible pains in his knees

He headed for land

got stuck in the sand

and then got infested with fleas

Flippin’ awesome

What’s not to love about penguins? Check out Kelly’s lovely account of her wander through Melbourne’s Sea Life Aquarium.

Kelly With A Why

Penguins fascinate me. Flightless, skilled swimmers, they are an oddity of the animal kingdom. Fish out of water, or rather, birds out of sky. I admire their resilience, adaptability and noble sense of duty in the face of adversity. Out there in nature, survival is not assured for the entire black and white army – it is only for the fittest and luckiest of its soldiers. These guys live in harsh environments and face prey at sea as well as on land. I can’t bring myself to watch wildlife documentaries, it’s too much reality. Ignorance is bliss – as is a leisurely hour observing and appreciating these beautiful creatures at Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium.

I like to wander through Melbourne’s world-class aquarium every year or so. Sea Life is home to an impressive array of marine life, with the King and Gentoo penguins the star attractions. There are beautiful…

View original post 342 more words

Twittering Tale #95 – Raindrops on Glass – 31 July 2018

It’s time again for Kat Myrman’s wonderful challenge to tax our creative souls. Just take her photo prompt and write a story, inspired by it, in 280 characters or fewer.

Photo by markusspiske at Pixabay.com

Here is this week’s prompt and my contribution. Check out all the fabulous entries here.

I do love a seaside holiday.
So do I, but not the West coast of Ireland!
You must agree there’s some fantastic scenery?
I would, if I could see it!
It’s getting lighter over there.
That’s just wishful thinking.
Oh, come on. Be more positive.
Two more pints of guinness please landlord!

(278 characters)

 

Song Lyric Sunday Theme for 28/01/18

Helen’s theme this week is one that immediately set my music brain to The Sound of Music, but we are not going there! Oh no!

The theme is goodbye/farewell, and I can think of no better example to share with you than the absolutely divine, stupendous, moving music that is obviously enjoyed by not only the audience and the singers, but also by the whole orchestra. Played, and sung with the utmost feeling, it is “TIME TO SAY GOODBYE”

This piece of Operatic Pop has been hugely successful in many countries, used for sporting events, film scores, and, of course at concerts. It has been covered by numerous artists, and translated into many languages.

To appreciate this to its fullest extent you really need to sit down, get rid of all distractions, watch on a larger screen, and turn the sound UP.

Lyrics

Quando sono solo
Sogno all’orizzonte
E mancan le parole
Sì lo so che non c’è luce
In una stanza quando manca il sole
Se non ci sei tu con me, con me
Su le finestre
Mostra a tutti il mio cuore
Che hai acceso
Chiudi dentro me
La luce che
Hai incontrato per strada

 

Time to say goodbye
Paesi che non ho mai
Veduto e vissuto con te
Adesso si li vivrò
Con te partirò
Su navi per mari
Che, io lo so
No, no, non esistono più
It’s time to say goodbye

 

Quando sei lontana
Sogno all’orizzonte
E mancan le parole
E io sì, lo so
Che sei con me, con me
Tu mia luna, tu sei qui con me
Mio sole, tu sei qui con me
Con me, con me, con me

 

Time to say goodbye
Paesi che non ho mai
Veduto e vissuto con te
Adesso sì li vivrò
Con te partirò
Su navi per mari
Che io lo so
No, no, non esistono più
Con te io li rivivrò
Con te partirò
Su navi per mari
Che, io lo so
No, no, non esistono più
Con te io li rivivrò
Con te partirò
Io con te

 

Songwriters: Francesco Sartori / Frank Peterson / Lucio Quarantotto

Time to Say Goodbye lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Global Talent Publishing