Monochrome Monday ~ Big Bear
The goal of life is to make your heart beat as one with the Cosmos.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
Big Bear is a cool place to spend a long weekend
in the summer
no way I’m going up there at this time of year
I hate snow
What Some Women Say They Don’t Want
Should a guy always pay the tab in a fancy restaurant?
Following my ‘Shipping Forecast’ post earlier today, I have been roundly disabused about what women want. A close friend of mine has told me, in no uncertain terms, that most women do not want ‘guys who pick up the restaurant bill, arrange the vacations and buy the tickets, and who will go to wild parties and pretend to enjoy them……’
Funny, she could have fooled me, because where ever I have been with her, whatever great road trips we have been on, whenever we have been to a nice restaurant, or called at a cool bar ~ I have always paid for everything. And, from the first time I met her she has expected me to always pay for everything. (With the exception of a few drinks, or a meal once in a while…..)
Also she has expected me to enjoy meeting her family and friends at various lunches and get-togethers. Quite frankly I don’t want to get to know her family and friends. We don’t have that kind of relationship.
As it goes I don’t mind always picking up the tab, but I object when she says that’s not what she wants, and that it’s not what most women want.
Or, have I got things totally wrong, again?
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
the end of a great road trip
The Shipping Forecast
I must go down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
and all I ask is a tall ship, and a star to steer her by…..
At 05:20 each morning the haunting notes of Lillibullero announce the beginning of the shipping forecast on my wireless. Weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles, it’s as reliable as Death and Taxes, and as accurate as an atomic clock. The shipping forecast has to be accurate, sailors lives depend upon it. It’s all about the wind, the sea, the sky, and the clouds.
The shipping forecast has been made available to sailors for the past 151 years, (except during wartime when weather was a military secret), and has been broadcast on the wireless since 1911. In more than 100 years the BBC has only failed to broadcast the forecast once, on 30 May 2014, when due to a technical fault listeners heard the BBC’s World Service instead.
The 31 sea areas reported always come in exactly the same order. Mostly I mentally tune out the reports and forecasts for such places as Southeast Iceland, Faeroes, Fair Isle, Viking….. But I really listen up when the announcer intones Cromarty, Forth, Tyne, Dogger….. because that includes ‘my’ sea area, and as my garret is just 100 yards from the sea I get whatever weather the shipping forecast says is expected.
Utterly reliable, honest, dependable, accurate, and a little old-fashioned, the Shipping Forecast is a rock of stability in an ever-changing world, and I’m probably the only person I actually know that listens to it.
I should learn from the Shipping Forecast. I firmly believe that what women want most in a long-term partner are exemplified by the qualities of that daily radio broadcast; reliability, honesty, dependability, accuracy in thought, word, and deed ~ and maybe a little sense of old-fashioned style.
Some say that women want spontaneity, excitement, adventure, really cool things. And, that most women want guys who pick up the restaurant bill, arrange the vacations and buy the tickets, and who will go to wild parties and pretend to enjoy them. All I know is that when the shit hits the fan women want a guy they can rely on to keep them safe, a guy as dependable as the Shipping Forecast.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talk
the cold grey North Sea is often a very dangerous place to be
Scenes on Sunday ~ Dramatic Clouds
There are no rules of architecture for a castle built in the clouds.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
I heard their evils sounds
as they all tried to clip my wings
and keep my feet back on the ground
I don’t care, I’ve already burned my bridges
so don’t even look for me, I won’t ever be around
She’s Irresistible To Men
The women we’re not supposed to have are the most irresistible.
Some women are literally almost irresistible to some men, and if you’re a guy that’s scary….. And usually the best thing you can do is get far away from her, as soon as possible. I can practically guarantee you that if you find a woman irresistible you’re going to end up broken and burned and wishing you could forget her. And you know what? You never will.
Maybe I’ll live so long I’ll forget her. Maybe I’ll die trying. ~
The Lady from Shanghai
But what makes a woman irresistible to a man? I’d like to say it depends, but mostly it doesn’t. And it isn’t all about looks, although the way she looks is important. Some of the things that can make a woman irresistible to a guy are;
- She knows what she wants, and she’ll do just about anything to get it.
- She has a sophisticated and cultured outlook on life, including her sense of humour, conversation, dress sense, makeup, and manners.
- She’s direct, forthright, and down to earth, quite prepared to call a spade a fecking shovel if she needs to.
- She is fit and healthy, preferably an ideal weight for her height, she has some muscle definition, and she knows how to walk well.
- Sexually she’s not only damn good, she’s also passionate, adventurous, and funny.
- She doesn’t spend all her time on social media when she is supposed to be with you.
- She doesn’t ever flirt with other guys when she’s supposed to be with you.
- She doesn’t expect you to get to know and like her family or friends.
- She never, ever talks about her past and her ex lovers.
- In some strange way she has that indefinable magic that makes her utterly charming.
- She likes kissing you, and she kissed you first.
I was born when you kissed me. I died when you left me. I lived a few weeks while you loved me. ~ Humphrey Bogart
And let’s face it….. most women are irresistible to most men anyway, no matter what.
Some say that what a women likes most in a man is that he’s tall, funny, well-behaved, and attentive. And that good manners go a long way to making a woman like a guy. All I know is that money changes everything.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
It’s fun to be rich
you get to meet all kinds of unsuitable women
Songs on Saturday ~ Robert Palmer
A woman in love with her life is simply irresistible to men.
lovable
irresistible
utterly sexual
just unthinkable
you’re unforgivable
love’s lust permissible
passions understandable
she’s just simply irresistible
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
Some other sorts of women seem to be irresistible to some sorts of impressionable men
It’s really understandable
courtship and romance
Life is a matter of courtship, wooing, romance, flirting, and dancing.
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relationships and friendships may not last
personality and character sometimes alter
feelings attitudes may come from the past
be strong, be brave, be fast, do not falter
kind faithful honest honourable steadfast
and in time, with luck, you may yet win her
heart’s affections and her soul’s truest love
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
embrace courtly love
embrace your lover and dance
Food on Friday ~ one pot meals
When you’re cooking a delicious meal, it’s easy to feel good about life.
Living alone in the garret, meals that I can make using just one pot / pan / baking sheet really appeal to me. I like cooking, but I don’t like washing-up afterwards, so the fewer pots and pans I use the better.
If you can make your whole meal in your slow cooker / crock pot, then that also counts as just one pot.
As for me, not only do I try to make all my meals in just one pot, I also try to use no more than 5 ingredients, (not including herbs and spices), and make meals that require no more than 20 minutes of prep time.
First this week we have a soup recipe from Dana at The Minimalist Baker; 1-pot golden curry lentil soup. I bet this would be fabulous after a long walk on a cold autumn’s day. This vegan dish takes about 90 minutes to make, but most of that is it just simmering away on its own.
1-Pot Golden Curry Lentil Soup
Now from Chungah at Damn Delicious we have a cold fighting chicken noodle soup. You’ll only need one pot and about a half hour to make this wonderfully warming autumnal dish. And maybe it fights two kinds of cold…..
Cold Fighting Chicken Noodle Soup
Tiffany at Creme de la Crumb has a collection of pumpkin recipes for this fall, and knowing how Americans like their pumpkins coming up to Halloween, I thought I would feature this creamy pumpkin soup with grilled cheese croutons. You are going to be able to make this in less than a half-hour
Creamy Pumpkin Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons
Jessica Merchant at How Sweet Eats has posted this great looking recipe for one pan sesame chicken. admittedly you’d want to serve this with rice, but these days I make my rice by using a microwaveable packet, so that doesn’t really count as using a second pan. hahahahaha
One Pan Sesame Chicken
Moving on to a slow cooker recipe, there’s this gorgeous looking healthy slow cooker turkey an white bean chili, from Tieghan Gerard at Half Baked Harvest. I like that Tieghan has served this dish with sliced avocado.
Healthy Slow Cooker Turkey and White Bean Chili
Found for us by Elise Bauer at Simply Recipes there’s this great one skillet dish from Lisa Lin; pasta skillet with chicken sausage, cheese & spinach. Ready in just 30 minutes and so easy to make in just one skillet ~ and if you don’t have a skillet, get one.
Pasta Skillet with Chicken Sausage, Cheese & Spinach
Our collection this week is from Country Living magazine again; 33 quick and easy one dish-meals ~ I know a girl in California who might find this collection most helpful when it comes to meal planning. From these 33 recipes I particularly like the honey-soy glazed salmon with mushrooms and peppers, for a $12 spend and 35 minutes it doesn’t get any better and easier than this.
Honey-Soy Glazed Salmon with Mushrooms and Peppers
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
This is Marmaduke’s idea of what goes into a one-pot meal.
National Poetry Day
The Torch of Life
Today, Thursday October the 4th is National Poetry Day in England. The theme is Change. But you know what they say; plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose…..
This has long been my favourite poem, back to the days I had to learn it in Grammar school;
Vitaï Lampada
There’s a breathless hush in the Close to-night~
Ten to make and the match to win~
A bumping pitch and a blinding light,
An hour to play and the last man in.
And it’s not for the sake of a ribboned coat,
Or the selfish hope of a season’s fame,
But his captains hand on his shoulder smote
‘Play up! play up! and play the game!’
The sand of the desert is sodden red~
Red with the wreck of a square that broke;~
The Gatling’s jammed and the Colonel dead,
And the regiment blind with dust and smoke.
The river of death has brimmed his banks,
And England’s far, and Honour a name,
But the voice of a schoolboy rallies the ranks:
‘Play up! play up! and play the game!’
This is the world that year by year,
While in her place the school is set,
Every one of her sons must hear,
And none that hears it dare forget.
This they all with a joyful mind,
Bear through life like a torch in flame,
And failing fling to the host behind~
‘Play up! play up! and play the game!’
1892 by Sir Henry Newbolt
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jack collier jackcollier7@talktalk.net
So, my friend and I have really fallen out
Perhaps every friendship needs an argument just to see how stable it is.
A serious long-distance argument blew up with my Californian friend and I yesterday ~ or the day before depending upon which time-zone you’re in. This disagreement was / is so profound that it may prevent me from taking a trip to New Mexico in November. This dispute may be so serious that it will poison our relationship for good and all.
And yet, seemingly it’s all about nothing.
My friend likes watching far-out science fiction shows on Netflix. Alone among my friend’s family so it seems does her adult nephew.
Ergo my friend announced that she and her nephew were going to have regular Friday evening TV sessions watching weird science fiction.
Somehow, to me, it seems uncomfortably unacceptable for her to regularly spend a lot of time alone with her young, married nephew on regular TV ‘dates’ in her home. And, I made the mistake of telling my friend of my feelings.
She said; ‘…..So you think me and my nephew are weird….. Is that what you’re saying? That’s really sick…..’
And that’s where we’re at now. Not talking with one another enough to sort anything out.
Perhaps what is odd and unacceptable to my generation of Englishmen is normal in California where the culture is totally different from here. I still don’t like it.
Am I utterly and completely wrong? You tell me ~ please.
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jack collier
jackcollier7@talktalk.net
perhaps I’m doomed to for ever being alone and lonely
