Bunter Macingtosh Flirts With An Executive Lifestyle

A great tale from Peter Wells…

countingducks

When a letter arrived, addressed to Mr B.J. Macintosh from L.J.Lemmings Ltd, digital security experts, who boast that even their luncheon menu is encrypted, inviting me to be interviewed for a position in their Cyber Security department I was baffled. I had not applied for a job with that enterprise, but obviously someone in that company’s HR department, with the inside track on undiscovered abilities, had discovered a seam of talent in the Macingtosh persona unknown to its owner, or anyone else for that matter.

Those of you cursed with an unnecessary familiarity with my life might know that appearance means everything to me so I set off wearing my only suit, and with a copy of the “Undercover News” folded discreetly under my arm.

Once settled in the dimly lit interview room a chap whose face was modestly hidden by a screen asked me a series of questions: here…

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More on morning routines

Have We Had Help?

Morning Routine

A daily morning routine is something the entire population of the world has in common. Mine consists of the following, barely changing, otherwise it wouldn’t be a routine would it –sheesh!

 I slowly emerge from the land of nod as daylight brutally assaults my still closed eyes. No matter which way I turn in bed; no matter how hard I try to pull the duvet over my head, daylight wins.

My feet act on their own, swinging out of bed closely followed by my body. My brain however is still snuggled down in the warmth of the bed. Now in my divided state, I’m instantly grumpy as my body walks to the bathroom bleary eyed. Next comes further walking, this time to the kitchen.

My body goes into auto-pilot mode. Get kettle, take same to sink. Remove lid, place under tap; turn on tap, fill kettle, replace lid…

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Open Book Blog hop – Write what you know

Sit up straight and pay attention!!!

The topic of this weeks Open Book Blog hop is write what you know. I have heard this said may time since I started blogging and writing in 2016 and have found that I tend to do this unintentionally.

Some examples of where I have written what I know, outside of my fictional autobiography of my mother’s life, While the Bombs Fell, which is obviously based on the real facts of her life, are as follows:OCD / PTSD

Mental disorders: OCD/PTSD

I have a bit of experience with obsessive control disorder and some of the related conditions including anxiety disorders including panic disorder and social anxiety disorder, trichotillomania (hair-pulling disorder), excoriation (skin-picking) disorder and tourette syndrome (tic disorders). I have featured characters with OCD in a few of my short stories including The Willow Tree (Dark Visions anthology) and Missed signs (Whispers of the Past anthology). I also featured a…

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Don’t You Just Love It When…

Anyone would think that Microsoft is a bully!

Have We Had Help?

Don’t you just love it when your computer’s OS decides to automatically update itself? Mine did just that soon after I had logged on yesterday morning. Up until then it had been using Windows 8. But it decided that the time had now arrived for it to load Windows 8.1.

Like a petulant child it wanted to do it then and there, exhibiting all the signs of the software version of pouting when I didn’t immediately give in to it’s demands. I delayed it happening while I finished what I was doing – catching up with my emails, publishing Saturday’s blog post, and seeing what was happening on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.

Once I had done all of that, I closed my laptop down the only way the old Windows 8 OS allows, which meant removing this laptop’s battery and disconnecting the power cable. Next I reinstalled…

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What Is the Oldest English Word?

Read on to find out!

Nicholas C. Rossis

Someone asked this on Quora and Oscar Tay gave a fascinating answer.

The oldest recorded word In English is Gægogæ mægæ medu.

The Undley Bracteate

In 1982, a farmer in Undley Common, Suffolk, England, was walking across his field when he came across a fantastic bit of history: The Undley Bracteate, an Anglo-Saxon medallion dating to 450 AD. It was small, no bigger than a penny, and inscribed with the image of two babies – presumably Romulus and Remus – suckling from a wolf.

The Undley Bracteate is believed to be made in or near southern Denmark. It may have been brought to England by some of the earliest Germanic-speaking settlers. Image: the British Museum.

Gægogæ mægæ medu

The find itself would be interesting enough, but look carefully at that inscription around the edges. It’s not just a random pattern: in Runes, it says ᚷ‍ᚫᚷ‍ᚩᚷ‍ᚫ ᛗᚫᚷᚫ ᛗᛖᛞᚢ, gægogæ…

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Time to fess up!!!

They say confession is good for the soul – balderdash!!!

Have We Had Help?

Here is a question for all my fellow writers, both published like myself, and those who just love to write for the sheer joy of doing so. How many hours do you spend writing each day and how many words does it involve?

Ever since I changed the way I write from how I used to in decades long since past, when I would spend all day and long into the night to achieve a daily word count in the thousands, I now stick rigidly to a short but extremely intense daily session when I have a new story in mind.

I find this is the method that works best for me. If you are wondering how long; these days I limit myself to adding no more than one to two hundred words per day.

Once I get back into the swing of things, I start writing at five in…

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Blogger’s Books: Jack Eason

This from our man in Beetley, Norfolk…

beetleypete

I have featured Suffolk-based blogger and writer Jack Eason here before, with his excellent novel ‘Race Against Time’. Now I am happy to get the chance to promote his latest book, which is on sale for just 0.99p, and free for Kindle Unlimited users.

This is the synopsis.

A science-fiction story with a difference.

Apart from chronicling the ultimate change of life for a select few individuals, it questions all accepted ideas by closeminded academics that leave no room for alternative thinking by some among their number.

It is also about a woman born ten years after the Romans left Britannia forever and a man born in the twentieth century.

Add to that everything that is currently environmentally wrong with our planet today, and you have all the necessary ingredients for an enthralling tale.

You can find out more about Jack and his other books by following the links below…

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Just another day

I’m sitting here shaking my head…

Have We Had Help?

Don’t tell anyone folks, but I realized this morning that I was talking to myself. I was trying to decide on what I wanted for my breakfast, or even if I was hungry. As I stumbled down the passageway from my bedroom to the kitchen, I suddenly stopped outside its door. “Brrr – I’m cold!” I said out loud. So I headed back to the bedroom and grabbed my clothes, quickly dressing myself before the shivering really took hold.

Next, into the living room, on with the environment friendly low power lights and TV, then out to the kitchen to boil the kettle for a plunger full of coffee. While the kettle went to work I sat myself down in front of the box to watch the news wrapped up in a blanket. Can’t afford to run the heaters anymore for two reasons – the first being the exorbitant cost…

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A Common Interest

A great tale from Peter…

countingducks

I have spent my life’s journey looking out of the window at passing events, fascinated by the spectacle of existence rather than having any thoughts of a destination or purpose. “Clever but not present” a teacher said about me to my father on one occasion and I can agree, at least, on the “Not present” bit as that has been increasingly apparent to me during my life.

The people I work with in a retail business are among the nicest I have met, and defend a life of simple values as best they can, while working long hours on the minimum wage to sustain their families: that quietness, modesty and a certain caringness for others, are often absent in some customers, engrossed perhaps with more urgent concerns in their drive-through lives.

My landlord Richard, grumpy, invasive but kept at bay by that vague air of erudition which has made my…

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Another short story

Ten years have past…

Have We Had Help?

This short story is losely based on what happened to me soon after I moved into my neighbourhood ten years ago. While I have used some poetic licence, be in no doubt Oswald is my alter ego; and no that is not me pictured above…

~~~

Oswald’s Revenge

Without a word she plunged her hand into Oswald’s jacket pocket. The next moment she was frantically rubbing her hand on her dress. She ran screaming into the night.

Oswald rose groggily to his feet. Grabbing his walking stick, he readied himself to strike out at the teenage girl’s two male companions should they try to do him any harm. Any further action on his part ended a few moments later when a police car stopped beside them, taking both of the youths by surprise. After seizing and handcuffing one youth, a police officer helped Oswald to a seat at the bus…

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