Appreciated the anecdotes. In 'Big House', Laurie Levine sings, "Bicycle for Christmas but there's nowhere to ride" because, in South Africa, democracy meant becoming the most unequal country, and those with money built high walls with barbed wire and spikes i.e., kids removed from the streets.
Books were my friends, and I loved board games. And maybe once a season I got to play cards with the adults. I had food and school, but we were poor (though not dirt poor like my parents had been). Yet our apartment had a large garden that had mulberries, paw-paw, tomatoes and avo. Now another complex occupies it, and children in those flats only have a corridor.
Haven't seen bats for a long time, and now even the appearance of ants or a butterfly draws my attention. How quickly we killed.
Helluva good post, though you may garner more readers if it were divided into 4.
Cheers for that, Mike – much appreciate the appreciation. Indeed, I was doing much shorter and more frequent stuff at first – and have, ever since then, had suggestions from readers to go longer and shorter, both. (I do love brevity as an aesthetic, I just find myself tracing odd grand-arcs through turf that others don’t seem to cover). Probably ought to put my fresh batch of curious links up separately (if only to make the estimated reading time look less fearsome), but I wrote short stories for years, and have become semi-addicted to the nifty byproducts created between unfolding clues (like those funky books which share work by the characters, or maps of the narrated territory) especially because I seem to invoke the links without even realizing it, until the whole comes together (history ain’t supposed to be that much fun to write – especially not the economic cultural and military control side of things).
Thanks for those funky links also – I know the military summary channel already – but that Chinese traveler is a definite treat – I’ll watch it big screen on the sofa, later. I have several very talented Chinese artist friends with dual citizenship (Canada China) who find way more opportunities there – like working with Russians and Africans in the nineties, they helped me broaden my view a LOT!
You're a writer not a blogger. We live in a world of gotcha headers and the rewriting of the news, thus talent is read less.
I haven't written anything real in a long time, and nothing this year. Can't see how to make a difference. You appear to have more passion than me, so pleased to say hi. I don't subscribe anymore but have a page where I link to my favourites. That way I can visit at will rather than email demand. I'll add you.
I 'met' Yan as a tour guide for Yes Theory in China's copy of Paris - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QIEU9KkY5g. Was curious, got addicted, and have watched all 117 episodes of her current season. Watching her twice a week is my escape. The west of China, which includes the Uyghurs, is particularly interesting - Buddhists, Christians and Muslims. There's an episode where she experiences the contrast between a Chinese and a Russian town joined by a river bridge.
Appreciated the anecdotes. In 'Big House', Laurie Levine sings, "Bicycle for Christmas but there's nowhere to ride" because, in South Africa, democracy meant becoming the most unequal country, and those with money built high walls with barbed wire and spikes i.e., kids removed from the streets.
Books were my friends, and I loved board games. And maybe once a season I got to play cards with the adults. I had food and school, but we were poor (though not dirt poor like my parents had been). Yet our apartment had a large garden that had mulberries, paw-paw, tomatoes and avo. Now another complex occupies it, and children in those flats only have a corridor.
Haven't seen bats for a long time, and now even the appearance of ants or a butterfly draws my attention. How quickly we killed.
Helluva good post, though you may garner more readers if it were divided into 4.
Laurie Levine - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_l3zwn3zJCy9TEbLf2Gnice8pxrKunUtJY
So much about China we don't know, but her apolitical channel shows us -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLv_GC0Y2lc
Proxy war update - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vt3qm7YLe44
Cheers for that, Mike – much appreciate the appreciation. Indeed, I was doing much shorter and more frequent stuff at first – and have, ever since then, had suggestions from readers to go longer and shorter, both. (I do love brevity as an aesthetic, I just find myself tracing odd grand-arcs through turf that others don’t seem to cover). Probably ought to put my fresh batch of curious links up separately (if only to make the estimated reading time look less fearsome), but I wrote short stories for years, and have become semi-addicted to the nifty byproducts created between unfolding clues (like those funky books which share work by the characters, or maps of the narrated territory) especially because I seem to invoke the links without even realizing it, until the whole comes together (history ain’t supposed to be that much fun to write – especially not the economic cultural and military control side of things).
Thanks for those funky links also – I know the military summary channel already – but that Chinese traveler is a definite treat – I’ll watch it big screen on the sofa, later. I have several very talented Chinese artist friends with dual citizenship (Canada China) who find way more opportunities there – like working with Russians and Africans in the nineties, they helped me broaden my view a LOT!
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
You're a writer not a blogger. We live in a world of gotcha headers and the rewriting of the news, thus talent is read less.
I haven't written anything real in a long time, and nothing this year. Can't see how to make a difference. You appear to have more passion than me, so pleased to say hi. I don't subscribe anymore but have a page where I link to my favourites. That way I can visit at will rather than email demand. I'll add you.
I 'met' Yan as a tour guide for Yes Theory in China's copy of Paris - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QIEU9KkY5g. Was curious, got addicted, and have watched all 117 episodes of her current season. Watching her twice a week is my escape. The west of China, which includes the Uyghurs, is particularly interesting - Buddhists, Christians and Muslims. There's an episode where she experiences the contrast between a Chinese and a Russian town joined by a river bridge.