Dru, Steinbeck and the Book of Deer

Dear Juliet I'd had a serious and supportive thought for the start of this one, then several other things impinged (looks like you looked at five blogs of mine about Point Lobos last night?) and I had a Thelma & Louise moment, perhaps mixed with Galaxy Quest ... Well, it all works off the supportive thought, which is this: As I understand it, children of narcissists often think they need someone's permission to do stuff. No you don't. You're free. I think I'll just repeat that. You. Are. Free. Obviously, don't go all Thelma and Louise . There are laws and social norms. But you are absolutely free to pursue life, liberty and happiness. Like, really. I'd just been thinking about the Carmel River Inn myself. Seems like they've also got a Morning Joy Café these days and there's a Safeway across the road. Monastery's nearby. You also seem to get really good rates if you stay Sunday to Thursday. And that's the thing. If you just want to take...

Dear Juliet Got kidnapped by senior citizens for a chat at a care home after my last call last night and told them all my stories. You now have some fans in Lavington Court, Bridgnorth. It's perhaps important to stress that I don't tell anyone too much, but it does make my day. However, I always keep your confidences, that oath still holds true today. This'll have to be a short one as I'm running all round the shire this day. It's the usual problem: too few carers, more elderly needing help... America's in the same schtuck. I got a complimentary newspaper at the Carmel Highlands Hyatt in 2023 and promptly read that the number of young Americans coming into the workforce was going up by 6% while the amount of elderly U.S. citizens was increasing by 31%. I hope you've got a lot of money in your 401(k). Okay, I've got to run. Have a nice day! Love, James

Dear Juliet It seems today will be another full and quiet day. It's a little likely I'll repeat what I have to say. That love's not conditional, there is hope and tomorrow is another day. That's all I've really tried to say, that I don't hate you although I'm not too sure about that beret. That I do worry about you now and then. That I hope you won't go away. A little low on energy after an early start today, nice to see you've done some nocturnal reading (glad you had another look at the Book of Deer, by the way), a cooler front's coming and I'm probably not going anywhere on holiday. But I think there's a future on the way. A possible future, anyway. I hope you find your way. Love, James

Dear Juliet I'd thought of writing a blog about the time I wound up in Death Valley on a midsummer day one May, but I already did that with my first post on here ... And they had a cold snap. In Needles, a cold snap means the temperature stays under 90 F., but it seems L.A. is currently quite overcast at 70 F while Shifnal is hitting the heights at about 93 F. It's going to be fun working in this hot old town tonight, and I missed last night's eclipse as I was travelling around the shire spreading some kindness that night, too. Got this shot of sunset's song in nearby Kemberton, though. So, five calls in Bridgnorth tonight and what shall I say? I think I'll say that coming back tonight and seeing your statistical presence on the blog makes my day. It's a simple point, but one which must be strongly underlined. I look forward to "seeing" you that way and it fulfils my day. I don't mind getting stuck in a waiting room in San Antonio, strolling round...

Dear Juliet I know you're probably feeling a bit fragile, so let me reassure you this blog isn't that gory. Just a few more figments of England and history... There's a little village called Little Sodbury (yes, really!) in Gloucestershire, which is one of the forty or so English hamlets which got all their World War One soldiers back. They're called Thankful Villages . Their churchyards are memorable not for what they have but for what they lack, namely war memorials. I went there a few years ago: And next to the churchyard with no war memorial, I found this interesting sign: So, okay, here comes the gory bit... William Tyndall or Tyndale was just about the first person to translate the Bible into English; and definitely the first person so to do using the original Greek and Hebrew source materials. The Book of Deer, for example, is written completely in Vulgate Latin except for those annotations in Scottish Gaelic. It seems to be fact that Tyndale first got his brigh...

Dear Juliet The above phrase was famously attributed to George V after he spent several months recuperating from lung surgery in Aldwick, near the seaside town of Bognor, West Sussex . Bognor got a bit hopeful it might be able to add the royal suffix of Regis to its name, George reputedly got a bit irritated when asked about this and may have uttered the immortal line, "oh, bugger Bognor!" His aides probably sweetened him up a bit, and today the town rejoices in the title Bognor Regis. I've got cousins in Felpham, next door to Bognor, and have visited for decades. So here are a few photographs of a typical British seaside resort, rather unlike Santa Monica... Beach huts and the sign to The Sea... On the beach... Obedient local bikers... And William Blake 's lodgings near The Fox, Felpham. This is where he wrote "Jerusalem"  ca. 1804 before making seditious remarks to a young soldier in the doorway of The Fox and being arrested... There's actually a refe...