1) What is your favorite part of Christmas?

 

Cooking the Christmas meal.

 

2) What was the best Christmas gift you ever received?

 

A book token which allowed me to buy the complete 'Sharpe' series of books by

Bernard Cornwell.

 

3) What was the worst christmas gift you ever received?

 

A jigsaw puzzle.

 

4) When did you stop believing in Santa Clause?

 

As soon as I started to read (about 2).

 

5) What is a memory you have of Christmas that you will never forget?

 

Most of the memories are of friends and family, eating and drinking, giving gifts,

playing games. I don't have single memories just a whole series of memories conjured

by the smells and sounds of Christmas.

What was the first book that left a lasting impression?

"Great Expectations" by Charles D.ckens.

Which book would you recommend to a teenager reluctant to try literature?

"Mort" by Terry Pratchett, "Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain, "The Blue Sword" by Robin McKinley, "Potshot" by Robert B. Parker, "Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque" by Edgar Allan Poe or "Pride and Prejudice" Jane Austen (depending on the teenager).

When was the last time you laughed?

A few minutes ago reading Gatsby722's last blog entry.

Which contemporary author do you think will still be read in 100 years time?

Terry Pratchett (and several others).

What were you doing at 8 am today?

Looking for bbs construction software written in php3.

Flip to page 21, paragraph 2 in the book closest to you right now, what does it say?

"The boy grew and throve until at fourteen years old there was no stronger
or sturdier lad of his age within the city bounds. Giles had caused him to
be taught to read and write, accomplishments which were common among the
citizens, although they were until long afterwards rare among the warlike
barons." From "St. George for England" by G.A. Henty (this is an approximation because I am reading it from Project Gutenberg).

What is the most romantic thing a girl/guy has ever done for you?

A girl once wrote a song about me.

If you could invite three fictional couples to your own house for dinner, who would they be?

Peter and Harriet Wimsey, Nick and Nora Charles and Sam and Lady Sybil Vimes.

Do you sleep with your bedroom door open or closed?

Closed. 

What is your current desktop picture?

I have a barn owl (tyto alba).

 

Who is your role model or hero?

 

My hero is Douglas Bader (the airman), I don't think I have a role model,

I admire some people (writers, singers, actors and actresses etc).

 

Highlights of my life

 

Meeting interesting people, reading good books.

 

Imaginary wishes

 

Have always wanted to write and direct a good film, and write a good book.

 

Most unusual places visited

 

The catacombs in Paris, the 'musem' of Zennor, Cornwall, the market place in Tunis.

 

Famous friends

 

I have a number of acquaintances like Ian Dury, Hugh Cornwell, Andy Partridge

no famous close friends.

 

Major venues visited

 

All the major music venues, and lots of the minor ones, in and around London,

several football stadia and cricket grounds. I too have visited Wembley, for the

Rolling Stones, Genesis, Springsteen, Bob Dyaln and David Bowie. (who I also saw at

the Milton Keynes Bowl and Main Road.

 

Remaining ambitions

 

I would like to go to America, I still want to meet several writers (Robert Parker, Carol

O'Connell, Maya Angelou etc)

 

Unusual abilities

 

I can explain things quite well and have a great ability to find things out and do detailed

research on an enormous variety of subjects. I read at least 1 book a day, sometimes

a lot more. Not sure whether these are unusual.

 

Where do I think I will go after death?

 

I would like to think that as in the movie "A Guy Named Joe" 1943 remade as "Always" 1989 I could become a sort of 'guardian angel' providing inspiration for other people

and their talents.

 

Interesting questions Satguru

 

You suddenly have five million dollars.  What one thing about you, or your life, would change?

I would buy every dvd on my list of favourite films (currently over 260) I have about 30 or so. Quite a number are old black and white movies and tv series.

    

What is the very first thought in your head when you wake up in the morning?

Damn, the elves haven't cleaned the house and made me breakfast (again).

   

Who do you seek advice from?

The people who know most about what I want advice on, usually they don't know any

more than I do.

 

Say one nice thing about the town you live in:

The people are generally pleasant.

 

Who would portray you if a movie was made based on your life?

Pierce Brosnan (because we're practically twins). Sorry, that answer is a complete

fabrication, the closest would be Geezer Butler (if he grew a beard and was 4 inches shorter).

 

Name an album that is good from start to finish:

There are loads but one of my favourites is 'River' by Terry Reid which is excellent from the first track 'Dean' to the last 'Milestones'. Also 'Black Sea' by XTC from 'Respectable Street' to 'Travels in Nihilon' is one of the great albums.

     

What was the last insulting thing somebody said directly about you?

Something that was meant to be an insult by an American reviewer of one of my short stories was "you write dialog as if it is spoken by Christopher Walken". I have decided that it is a compliment. The short, fat, ugly, scruffy and untalented comments by large numbers of people I ignore.

 

Do you live by the standards written in The Holy Bible?

No my standards are higher than that.

 

Were you popular in high school?

Certainly not. I was looked on as a swot who was bad at games (sport).

 

What's the drawback in living to be 100?

The main drawback would be that the people around you wouldn't have the same frames of reference, haven't heard the same music, watched the same tv programs, read the same books, seen the same films. Most of the people I know have a large number of similar interests and experiences, they like curry, motorbikes, Terry Pratchett, guitar based rock, 70's sitcoms, Monty Python, a beer or two, computers and gadgets, a good laugh etc.

Losing friends and connections is the worst part of growing old.

 

Ok, Downscope, do your worst.

A friend of mine has been exerting her will. On Tuesday I got an early morning text message followed by a 'phone call from my closest friend. He suggested I go round to his place, sink a few and watch a couple of DVDs. Upon arrival I found him in an uncustomary

annoyed state, his mother (a great friend of mine) was resisting treatment in Yorkshire and wanted to come back to Southport. My friend, currently car-less, had arranged what he could (220 'phone calls to get her a place in a good nursing home) and finally an arrangement with his sister that we would borrow her car and drive to Yorkshire, she would come along. The car was very small the occupants weren't. We hastened to Yorkshire, arrived at the hospital made multifarious arrangements, medications, ambulance transportation, early admission to the nursing home. Then followed the ambulance home.

On this 'road trip' we encountered no 'wacky' characters, didn't get into any tricky situations with gunrunners, smuggled diamonds, a hidden map or a secret formula. We didn't recover an errant video tape, and we certainly weren't in a blue Cadillac de Ville - I felt somehow cheated. We arrived at the nursing home saw that (despite her will) she was very tired (but happy). We went home and had a beer (or six). In the morning I sorted out a few tapes, radio-cassette player, book etc to take down to the home. Shortly after 9 my friend arrived to tell me she had passed away watching the sunrise over the garden through the patio doors at the home. We then begin to discover how extraordinary this women really was. She has a 3 page handwritten list of the funeral arrangements, music, vicar, flowers, donations to charity, lists of people to be informed, letters prepared etc etc. Even after death she still exerts a control over people and events, they move but I swear I can see her twitching strings and smiling. As for the subject line "Are you coming 'round for breakfast, Monday." that was how she tended to open telephone conversations with me, usually following it with "You wouldn't mind picking up a few things" (I never did mind). So I would pick up the "few things" add in a book or two, perhaps lend her a DVD or cd from my collection and go 'round. She would make me a large cooked breakfast and we would talk about anything and everything, we would tell stories, perhaps do a crossword,

I would feed the garden birds, and do any odd jobs she wanted doing. Well she made her arrangements and, I hope, got what she wanted in the end. I am just wondering what I shall do with all these superfluous Mondays.

 

Regards,

 

Tin