John, Uilleam, Stephen and Keith: I appreciate your kind comments.
And thanks to Steve, Hélène, Manish, Graham, Nigel, Rudyard and Purplemoon for liking this one.
Comment is about Milk Bottles (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
Thanks Stephen for you comment. Media seems very alien sometimes
Comment is about Rain (blog)
Original item by Edbreathe
Love this! Face to face, sharing a story of hope & beauty; guys chatting during the work day; artists pouring out their souls...the title alone speaks volumes "all that love can do"
Comment is about All that love can do (blog)
Original item by John E Marks
Thank you Mike for painting a beautiful picture; one that fills my heart with sunshine and joy whenever I see her.💓
Comment is about What Do I see? (blog)
Original item by Mike Bartram
Thankyou, Helene for your thoughts and Stephen and CLare for the Like.
Comment is about ALFIE THE INCORRIGIBLE OPTIMIST (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Glad you enjoyed this one, Steve, Keith, Graham, Uilleam, and John. Thanks for the Likes, Aisha, Stephen, and Nigel!
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
John,
Thank you for this tribute. I was deeply saddened to hear of Paul's passing. A hero in the world of compassion and good humour.
Thank you for this,
Keith
Comment is about PAUL O'GRADY D.L. (blog)
Original item by John E Marks
Crafted with descriptive skill which creates images in the mind of the reader that linger within the realm of near sensuality. One of the best poems I have read for a long time.
Thank you for this
Keith
Comment is about Seeds For Gaia (blog)
Original item by Stephen W Atkinson
Enjoyed reading about Alfie. Vivid, sweet, funny poem!
Comment is about ALFIE THE INCORRIGIBLE OPTIMIST (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Thanks Jack for your comment and for reading. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this poem.
Comment is about Meet Me By The Shore (blog)
Original item by kimberly
I enjoyed this poem and may I venture to say that it came about as a part of creation by which the most intricate parts of nature have their being. There is of course another word for nature. However, it not in popular usage.
Thanks for this
Keith
Comment is about The horse’s leg,a miracle,how did it come about ? (blog)
Original item by hugh
A profoundly spiritual poem written with an inner knowledge.
Thank you for this,
Keith
Comment is about Luminescent (blog)
Original item by Hélène
This poem forms a collage of thoughts. The final words are those whose impact stays with the reader. "The wind does not tell lies. Humans do that". Today we live in a swamp of deceit in which many no longer can find the truth.
Thank you for this
Keith
Comment is about Milk Bottles (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
Thank you Stephen.
Amid the hurley-burley of opinion and speculation in news reports, it's easy to forget that each and every one of those soldiers is an individual, the son of a mother who is in a permanent state of anguish and grief.
Comment is about Milk Bottles (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
I'd go along with most of that MC.
But with a caveat: Those who confuse respect with blind obedience deserve neither.
Comment is about POINTS TO PONDER (blog)
Original item by M.C. Newberry
Well done Trevor. Could I pitch in with my 50p's worth?
"Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations" is the inscription on the 50p coin which was issued to celebrate that titanic success, Brexit.
Stig Abell of the Times Literary Supplement bemoaned the lack of an Oxford comma after the word "prosperity".
Nonsense, I say; the conjunction "and" does what it says on the tin; it joins the words "prosperity" and "friendship"; a comma would do the opposite, breaking, the, rhythm, of, the, words.
Comment is about Grammar Police (blog)
Original item by Trevor Alexander
You've got my vote, Uilleam.
Comment is about Ouvriers Britanniques en Solidarité Avec La CGT -" À bas Macron- À bas les Tories. (blog)
It always surprises me when I see written pieces, notices etc - designed to be read by as large an audience as possible - full of grammatical and spelling errors which quickly turns off potential readers.
Comment is about Grammar Police (blog)
Original item by Trevor Alexander
I helped my friend jack off his horse.
I believe there was said to be an execution because a misplaced comma. “Hang him not, leave him”.
Comment is about Grammar Police (blog)
Original item by Trevor Alexander
Well said, Trevor. I once attended a speaking group where a 'grammarian' was designated each evening. Interesting idea, although it proved that many intelligent people each have a very different opinion on what constitutes good grammar!
Comment is about Grammar Police (blog)
Original item by Trevor Alexander
Witty and wise. Use of words merits the same care and
attention as the use of tools of any trade worthy of respect
and the intended result of one's labours.
Comment is about Grammar Police (blog)
Original item by Trevor Alexander
No regrets!
I am minded to remember the old adage
"if you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there'
I've always found it sage advice!
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
Tue 28th Mar 2023 14:19
Nice to see us pedants getting some recognition
Comment is about Grammar Police (blog)
Original item by Trevor Alexander
I'd like to visit this place. Nice to know there are still some good things in the world. Cheerful poem!
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Thanks everyone, for the likes and comments. This piece seems to have generated mixed responses, which I find interesting - whenever I write I like to leave it up to the reader to interpret my words based on their own life experiences.
In answer to your question, John Marks, this piece is actually based on conversations I had with my father before he died. The ‘amends’ I talk about are very personal to me. My father left me in an orphanage when I was a child after my mother had a mental breakdown. I often write about the conversations we had whilst we attempted to reconcile before his death.
For me, this piece encompasses the societal changes that have taken place in my lifetime with regard to single fathers and post partum psychosis. It is not intended to be pessimistic - quite the opposite. So I am glad some of you find it inspirational and a bit abstract. ☺️
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
Thankyou, Uilleam. I’ve had a bit of Viking in me; he was called Magnuss.
And thanks for the Likes, Kevin, Stephen and Aisha.
Comment is about IF THEY COME (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Thanks for that Greg. I've seen it on telly, and would love to visit it. Real book shops are a precious asset for any community; our town lost a gem of a family-run concern a few years ago; fortunately our due-to-close Waterstones was given a 5 year reprieve; I called it the "last vestige of civilisation" in our declining town.
I agree with you 100% Keith, on myopic vision, and nationalised industry working for all. I remember travelling with dad on the last trolley bus out of town-a red hot day, sat on the top deck-phew!
I'd not be in the least surprised if certain politicians were in the pay of certain road construction companies in the Beeching era!
I'm fortunate enough to live not too far away from this beauty of a railway staffed by volunteers, and I believe not-for profit management: the ELR- East Lancs Railway.
https://www.eastlancsrailway.org.uk/
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Well described Greg. I have visited Barter Books on several occasions, Alnwick being the home of Hardy fishing tackle too!
Is this going to be one of your new hangouts?
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
A poem which offers some sound advice.
Thank you,
Keith
Comment is about Doing (blog)
Original item by Hélène
Another example of how this country has been mismanaged in the past by those with myopic vision. Branch lines took us to exactly where we wanted to go by a nationalised industry working for the benefit of all. Trolley buses and trams with little or no pollution rambled their way through the streets of our towns and cities. Now the trams are back, a reversal of policy. We are governed by those who fail to learn the mistakes already made. Too late!!!!
Greg, thank you for this.
Keith
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Thanks John; the British Isles have a fascinating history.
Unfortunately, the enemy's already within and well-known: they named a bottle of sauce after them- HP-Houses of Parliament.
Actually Graham- what did the Vikings ever do for us?
They gave me blood of the Vikings - Dupuytren's contracture, that's what.
I've had several operations on both hands, mostly sucessful; not a painful condition but inconconvenient, especially me being a musician.😉
https://www.topdoctors.co.uk/medical-articles/dupuytren-s-contracture-the-viking-disease-explained
Comment is about IF THEY COME (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
There are insensitive, thoughtless and vacuous people everywhere.
Today UK children are going to school with not enough food in their bellies, and inadequate heating in their homes.
Today UK Teachers can't do their jobs for lack of books, and some are working in poverty.
Today UK children are going to schools that are literally falling down around their heads.
Today UK nurses are treating our sick and injured with inadequate staffing and equipment, some, whilst officially working in poverty.
( all that while Kwasi Kwarteng, who wrote a book calling for the destruction of the NHS is on the take for a £10,000 a day second job! )
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/mar/26/kwasi-kwarteng-fake-korean-firm-boris-johnson-introduction
And what are the Daily Haters of UK journalism obsessing about?
The colour of someone's hair, the colour of his partner's skin, and the size of some Kardashian's arse!
Hey, shorty, get a life!😀
💓
Comment is about The Too Tall Tool by LADpoem (story of a 6ft 7 man) (blog)
Original item by LADpoem
I like this, Pete. It explores a lot of things and poses many questions. 'Black and white interference' is very evocative.
Comment is about Rain (blog)
Original item by Edbreathe
Thank you, Clare. I like the way the pace and rhyme of this makes it a fluent read. The message is a little pessimistic to some readers but I admire your honesty. I do see John's point about making amends.
But overall a really interesting poem.
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
Love the atmospherics of this one, Greg. It is sobering to think that at the time of Beeching the internal combustion engine was seen as providing the transport of the future and that in a few years time its phase-out will begin. Nothing stays the same for ever; perhaps it is the turn of the branch lines again.
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Thank you, MC. Of course, I was not comparing British royalty to anyone, just pointing out (in a facile way, I suppose) that there is a continuum of cowardice between those who shoot animals for fun and those who fire missiles at civilians. In both cases, it is power exercised from a safe distance and targeting the defenceless.
Thanks to Steve and Stephen A for liking.
Comment is about Pot Shots (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
Thankyou, Graham and Greg. And yes, Yorkshire abounds in Viking place names, sitting as it did east of the Danelaw line. And Northumberland (Northumbria) meant lands north of the River Humber, ie including Yorkshire..
Thanks for the Likes, John, Jack and Stephen.
Comment is about IF THEY COME (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
New poem to mark the 60th anniversary of the Beeching report that resulted in the closure of most of Britain's branch line railways.
Comment is about Barter Books, Alnwick (blog)
Original item by Greg Freeman
I always thought most Yorkshiremen were Vikings, John! I love the Northumberland vibe and sense of history in this one.
Comment is about IF THEY COME (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Tue 28th Mar 2023 01:31
What a wise and wonderful message this is
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
The French Revolution happened because of unbridled uncaring
excess indulged in by the privileged and powerful at the
expense of the far less so among the population. Out of
that revolt came the excesses of its own leading figures whose
conduct saw their own fellow travellers turn on THEM. Check
"Maximilian Robespiere" for starters. Violence has indeed
always been a part of the human condition and we ignore that
reality at our peril, but to compare our present Royalty to
other eras and their outcomes is too facile. not least for the
evidence to the contrary..
Comment is about Pot Shots (blog)
Original item by Stephen Gospage
Nice one! Can be read and interpreted in various ways that add
to its message - and perhaps, its challenge.
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
But to make amends for what? For being alive? For being who we are? I lost my best friend to suicide: I have survivor's guilt as well as recurring grief. But sometimes I have to be cruel to be kind, and I try to begin each day a-new.
"Remember, remember, this is now, and now, and now. Live it, feel it, cling to it. I want to become acutely aware of all I've taken for granted." Sylvia Plath
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
Excellent JC.
I don't think we haven viking members so you should be safe!
Comment is about IF THEY COME (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Really lovely, inspired me this morn to live with peace & awareness. Thanks, Clare!
Comment is about People Like Us (blog)
Original item by Clare
John Marks
Thu 30th Mar 2023 18:05
Thank you so much Hélène.
"Of all forms of caution, caution in love is perhaps the most fatal to true happiness." Bertrand Russell
Comment is about All that love can do (blog)
Original item by John E Marks