Happy 2026 - And Surviving the Oncoming Storms

So, time marches on, and here we are! It's been a while since I posted on here, and it seems to me that the start of 2026 is as good a time as any to restart my blogging practice! There's so much going on right now - with me, with our life, with the country, with the religions, with the world, with wars and scores and evil depredations - it's either a marvellous or an horrendous time to be alive, depending on your point of view!

As far as I am concerned, I am making some New Year's Resolutions - not that I typically believe in them, but I believe I need to make some rules to follow in order to track my progress. The last year has been very frustrating for me, and I need to do something to bring me back into a situation where I am getting healthier and making a more positive - and financially rewarding - situation in life before I no longer have any! As a brief resume, in 2025 I had cataract surgery, which was initially highly successful but then deteriorated due to complications from diabetes, which I was also finally diagnosed with. That was a hard issue for me to handle, as I have been in denial about that for many years. So there are complications from that, but telling me it's all my own fault because I didn't do anything about it for so long is just not fucking helpful at all! Then, due to a real 10 of Swords action by a (so-called) friend, I lost my contract in June and have not been able to get another one due to a number of factors, many of which are beyond my control although no less frustrating! So now I am in an "enforced retirement" situation, which is another highly frustrating and also quite frightening place to be, as we are definitely not ready for that at this time. 

So, back to my NY resolutions. These are designed to spur me on into the creative moods I will need to be in in order to get to a situation where I can actually start generating income from some of the works I am doing. Therefore, my resolutions are:

1. Write at least one blog post (I will have 4 blogs on the go!) every OTHER day.

2. Write for at least 2 hours MINIMUM per day - on any piece of work or medium.

3. Update the Wellness Log that Chris bought me for Christmas every day.

4. Do some form of exercise every day. My physical activity over the past few decades has been deplorable, so I really need to change that in order to prolong my life and help us reach our new life situations!

5. Increase my social media visibility and activity. While this ties into a lot of my intended future activities and my propensity for generating income from these. So social media is a major part of my future work load.

6. Lastly - be more rigorous about indulging my educational activities. These include reading (novels and non-fiction), Tarot and Occult activities (tied to my social media targets), and keeping up my Project Management activities and influence.

So - we will see how this all unfolds. I know what my first few blogs will be about - the state of the world and the current evils that so many factions are inflicting upon us all! There is so much to discuss in these, and it will be an achievement in and of itself!

If you've read this far, thank you for being here with me. I'm looking forward to keeping you all included and informed in my life as it progresses! 

Anxious Anticipation - Lord Foul's Bane

Many, many moons ago - back in 1977, to be precise-ish - in the continuous hunt for the next great Epic Fantasy, I was fortunate enough to be one of the first to encounter The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever, and the amazing debut novel that was Lord Foul's Bane!

 

Like the great J.R.R. Tolkien himself, I was wary of those stories of Faerie that involved travel of one form or another between the realm of reality and the perilous land, but found that I had little to worry about in this manifestation of that genre. Stephen R. Donaldson handles this transition with skill and aplomb, and the result is breath-taking!

 

 

 

Right from the start, I fell in love with The Land and its inhabitants, whether good, evil, or just filling the scenery. From Thomas Covenant - the conflicted, leprosy-inflicted hero who bears a stark resemblance to Berek Half-hand, who himself bears a striking resemblance to Beren Erchamion - through the Bloodguard, the enigmatic defenders of The Land and its inhabitants, as well as the Viles, Urviles, Ravers, Cavewights, Humans, and the Giants - one of my all-time favourite fantasy races - not to mention Lord Foul himself, Donaldson fills his creation with convincing characters and peoples, and describes his world in such beautiful detail he makes you want to be there. I read the entire series - Lord Foul's Bane, The Illearth War and The Power That Preserves - and read them again, and, like The Lord of the Rings and The Sword of Shannara, kept them close at hand for many years.

 

And then I moved to London. And then I moved to Canada. And, sadly, most of my beloved book collection remained back home in South Shields, where much of them became victims of age, bad storage, and the depredations of friends and family.

 

So I was thrilled when Grim Oak Press ( https://grimoakpress.com/ ) said they were publishing a limited, newly illustrated edition of the original Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant trilogy, and signed up as soon as I could to get one of the limited copies. Grim Oak had already published both lettered and limited illustrated editions of The Sword of Shannara, which I was pained to learn I'd missed out on, so was pleased I hadn't missed out of Covenant.

 

So now I am waiting in anxious anticipation on the April publication date. I have heard nothing but good things about the Grim Oak Press editions, and cannot wait to delve back into The Land and revisit one of the best fantasy worlds ever created.

Carry On Bowel Movements - Kenneth Williams - 1926-1988

I just finished reading Born Brilliant, the official biography of Kenneth Williams, and, like many people I assume, I am left with a collective contradiction of emotions and memories that only serve to add flavour to the mystique of one of Britain's most beloved, and obviously most misunderstood, comedic actors.

Pretty much any person born in Britain up to about 20 years ago would be familiar with and have fond memories of the series of Carry On movies and their standard cast of actors and actresses, of which Kenneth Williams is probably one of the two most memorable components, along with the loud-laughing Sid James.  In post-WW2 Britain, the Carry On movies, with their blend of baudy British comedy, formed a part of the Collective Psyche of Recovery that propounded an "Up Yours!" to both the English stiff upper lip and those that had been besetting them so recently, and which set the scene for so many memes around the British and sex that laid to rest the hangover of Victorian attitudes that so many still deride today.  Famous for their irreverent scripts and their promotion of the "camp" flair that oozed across Britain in the '60s and '70s, the Carry On movies remain firm favourites in the pantheon of British Comedy films.

And yet, while reading Born Brilliant, it becomes obvious that this huge, comedic talent was a massive collection of contradictions that both belie the star on the screen, and yet give credence to the often trooped message that behind every successful comedian there lies a tragic life. Who would have believed, for instance, that the genius of raunchy innuendo started each daily entry in his diaries with a detailed description of his bowel movement, and listed all of the pills and potions and prognoses of his multitude of illnesses - both real and imagined?


It's always entertaining to have our cravings for the "behind the scenes" gossip and situational conflict that comes with a successful ensemble of characters like those that made up the Carry On team over the years. The surreptitious relationships, the secret scandals, the outre contretemps and outrageous repartee loaded with sexual innuendo, are delicious morsels of mischief that are always avidly sort after by the British, with their inexhaustible hunger.  And there are huge quantities of these in Born Brilliant, just waiting to titillate the reader.  But the real revelations in the book cover Williams's inner emotions, beliefs and attitudes - his obsession with his health, his total dependence on his mother, Louie, his inability to form a deep, personal relationship with anyone, and his strange behaviour, both in public and in private.  Michael Parkinson calls him "brutal", and, at times, he was, reducing actresses to tears and friends to anger and despair, cutting associations dead at whim.  He would tell the great British public to "Fuck Off!" when they encountered him on the street, and while they laughed and assumed it was "just Kenneth William's way", he actually meant it.  Many of his colleagues were amazed to learn, afterwards, that he had actually held them in great disdain, even despised some of them, to say the least. Mind you, some of those feelings, like that between him and Sid James, were mutual, which tells even more what wonderful actors they both were, because that mutual dislike was never allowed to affect their performances together.



In later life, when the series of Carry On movies, the endless radio shows and his continuous successful and not so successful performances in numerous theatrical productions pretty much came to an end, Williams recreated himself as a game and chat show guest, becoming very popular in those roles, and cementing his place as one of the greatest entertainers Britain has ever produced.  But he persistently resisted all of the calls to America and Hollywood that would undoubtedly have brought him worldwide fame and an enviable fortune, remaining instead tied to England and north London, living his whole life within a few miles of his birth place, and tracking his income with feverish paranoia, making sure he always had enough money to look after himself and his mam.

Which leaves me with a confused impression of the man.  Like most Brits, I love his performances, and will always find them hilarious.  Knowing the background behind those makes them even more precious and interesting.  But knowing all of that additional background can't help but make me wonder how he ever managed to produce the work he did, and what greatness he might have achieved if he had only had the gumption to stretch himself that little further, and cross the Atlantic when asked to do so.  Another aspect of that is the fact that he was treated almost despicably by the Carry On producers, who only paid him a tenth of what they paid actors like Phil Silvers when he starred in one of the films.  So typical of the British, getting ripped off again and again by the very people who were supposed to care and nurture them. 

 

Like Kenneth said, "Infamy! Infamy! They've all got it in for me!" 

The Passing of the Past...

Muhammad Ali died this week. 74 years of age, but an icon that impacted so many lives during his span on Earth. I had the honour of meeting the man in a boxing ring at Gypsies Green stadium in South Shields back in 1977. He was in town for the opening of the new mosque in Laygate, which he was combining with having his marriage blessed by the imam.

 

Don't get me wrong - I wasn't boxing or sparring with the man! That was far above my pay grade at the time! ;)  I was there to greet him as Chairman of the South Tyneside Council of Youth, representing all of the youth organisations in the area. He was playing darts with Tony Green, while Peter Gillanders and I looked on.  I remember his hand totally engulfing mine as we shook them, then he punched me on the shoulder - quite gently for him, I suppose - before moving on.

 

 

 

I am also almost finished reading Born Brilliant, the biography of Kenneth Williams, the very popular and incorrigible comedy actor most famous for his very camp characters in the Carry On series of films.  Like most British people of my generation and older, the Carry On movies and their stars where significant pieces of our national psyche, and a major factor in our attitudes towards comedic and sexual innuendo and situational comedy. 

 

 

 

While Williams died quite a while ago - 1988 - and Muhammad just a few days ago, the whole aspect of their passing was summed up by a comment from a teacher and friend of mine back in England, Anthony Shedden, who expressed concern at the recent passing of so many childhood icons. There have been a number of these lately - Bowie, Prince, Ali, Lemmy - to name just a few. These sudden losses always make us think to our own mortality, even when they are much older than us, and lead us to look to our current situations in regard to life and health.  I don't believe that anyone wants die, especially before they feel they have completed what they may have set out to achieve, which is why we have all of these wonderous tales of life after death, heaven (or hell) and reincarnation to assuage our fears.  However, as indicators of our own personal aging, the loss of these markers of youth tells us that it's time to get on with what we have to do before we, too, succumb to the inevitable.  Time to stop dreaming those dreams and start making them happen, because, let's face it, if you don't try, you'll never succeed.  Feeling our mortality is an ideal way to inspire us to get going, because the clock is ticking, and it's not going backwards, my friends!

        

Wor hoos - from above!! :)

Our neighbours decided to put their house up on the market, and had a drone in to take some aerials. Once posted, they show some good views of our house, so you can see all the hard work Chris had done on the back garden!

 

 

General Overhead, looking West.

 

 

Looking South

 

Same, closer.

Looking South West

 

Looking South East.

 

Looking good! :)

Epic Fantasy Grows Up - A Song of Ice and Fire...

So, you know, I have been reading Epic Fantasy - and even non-epic fantasy - for as long as I can remember. Way back to my early childhood, starting with books such as The Chronicles of Narnia and The Hobbit, and progressing over the years to Michael Moorcock, Robert E Howard, Stephen Donaldson, Terry Brooks, Tad Williams, Robert Jordan, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera - and with a few notable exceptions - Potter and the Vampires! - I have filled my library with, literally, thousands of books! My perusals have ranged from the depths of deep space science fiction (Clarke, Asimov, Niven & Pournelle) through science fantasy (Silverberg, Feist, Herbert) across Sword and Sorcery (Moorcock, Howard, McCaffery), and on into the depths if true fantasy itself (Tolkien, Brooks, Williams), so, as arrogant as it sounds, I like to think I actually know what I am talking about when it comes to these genres.

 

So, a few days ago, I was chatting with one of my best friends back in dear old Blighty, and we were discussing our current reading materials. Soss (my friend's nickname) was reading some historical fiction - now there's an oxymoron if ever there was one! - as was I. But he also mentioned that he was reading A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin, the first volume in A Song of Ice and Fire. Of course, I had heard all of the hype around the HBO television series, but had never watched it, feeling television has been currently over run by fantasy spins-offs, and had not even wanted to approach the books, as I had been really busy over the last few years with the vagaries of the RLJ, as well as editing the works of some budding authors. But when Soss told me that he was really enjoying the book, I decided to bite the bullet, and bought the five-volume boxed set. Ordering them online meant I got a good deal on the price, too. :)

 

I had been, at the time, reading Mr. Mercedes  by Stephen King, and was enjoying it well enough. However, once I had Martin's books in my grubby little paws, the draw of The Perilous Realm exerted its influence over my mind, and I thought I'd just sample the beginning of A Game of Thrones, to get the flavour, as it were.

 

And, at this time, I am still reading...

 

I did feel it took a while (50 pages or so) to get into, as Martin takes a few chapters to introduce the main families and their provenance, but once you get through that initial exposure, I have to admit, the experience is stimulating and engulfing in a way that only a few, exceptional fantasy novels are. I am pleased to say that Martin is an accomplished storyteller, and his skill shines through in his writing. But what really makes his work shine out as a major achievement within the genre is the fact that, written with the edginess that modern literature now allows, it takes the reader into a more realistic version of the imagined world - more violent, more bitter, earthier, sexier, more physical - than has previously been seen. We would never see such brutal scenes as Jaime's attack on Bran, or sexuality like Jaime and Cersei or Daenerys and Khal Drogo, in the works of Tolkien or Brooks. What Martin has envisioned is a world where the fantasy is all grown up! These are no YA or NA soppy meanderings! These are sword through the heart, foot to the nuts, and spit in your eye yarns, full of dirt and dust, malice and lust, with a character list that rivals Tolstoy's War and Peace for complexity and sheer numbers!

 

Let's just say - I will be reading all five books, maybe more than once. And, maybe then, I will go on to watch the HBO series, and be one of those who complains about the changes made in the name of television!

 

I'll let you know how it goes! :)

Oh - and thanks for the advice, Soss! :)    

Doctor Who - Shada Revisited...

Holy Smokes!!!!

Can you believe it's almost a year since I last blabbed on here about anything, let alone Doctor Who??  Sure, I know I have been blogging on my other sites, but still!!

 

Anyhoo!! (A slip of the Canuck coming out there! LOL) Let's get on with it!

 

So, I did thoroughly enjoy seeing John Hurt become who they are now calling The War Doctor.  It will be interesting to see how they integrate him into the Doctor life-line - or is that 'lives-line'? - as there are already portrayals out there of Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor regenerating into Christopher Eccles's Ninth Doctor AND into John Hurt's Ninth Doctor!  I can see some shenanigans ahead resolving those, and I am also very curious to see if they develop John Hurt's Doctor any further, with tales prior to The Day of the Doctor.  And, of course, if they don't, there are myriads of would be Doctor Who writers out there just waiting to fill those gaps.

 

And it's gaps that brings me round to the current topic of this post, too.  (How's that for a segue?)

 

So, while I was browsing in one of the Chapters/Indigo libraries a short while back, I saw a book by Gareth Roberts, which was a novelisation of the lost Doctor Who story Shada, the script of which was originally written by the late, great Douglas Adams, of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fame.  I have to be honest and say I had not heard of Roberts before, but the name of Douglas Adams was very familiar to me, both in relation to the Hitchhiker and Doctor Who, so, after riffling through the pages a few times, just to make sure I got that "new book smell", I exited the bookstore with the tome in hand - after having paid for it, of course!

 

Back in the days of Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor, Shada was one of the 6-part tales produced by the BBC, the script of which, as I indicated above, was written by Douglas Adams during his involvement with the Doctor Who show.  However, due to industrial action at the BBC, the full story was never completed nor aired, and consequently became a "lost story".  Some extracts from the filmed sequences were sampled for other Doctor Who stories, such as The Five Doctors 25th Anniversary Special, but, in the main, the story remained unavailable and untouched for many years.  During that time, Douglas Adams sadly passed away, and various attempts at resurrecting the Shada story, using later Time Lords and voice-overs, etc., met with varying acceptance and success.  Another aspect of that sprung from the works of Adams himself, who used characters and storylines he'd created for Shada, in other books he wrote, most notably Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, where one of the main characters, Professor Chronotis, is also a major character in the second work.

 

Anyway, Gareth Roberts subsequently took the scripts that Adams had written, and expanded these into a complete novel, essentially working in reverse on the process of producing a script from a novel.  I was somewhat dubious at first about this process, but, having read the book, I am forced to admit that Roberts has done a fantastic job of spinning the narrative elements of the scripts into a cohesive and decidedly detailed and exciting story that any and all Whovians would be entertained by.  Roberts maintains Adams witty style, and builds the story strongly around the skeleton of the spoken words.  Sure, he takes some poetic license with Adams's plot, and adds interesting and, if you're sharp enough, subtle references to both other Doctor Who stories and some of Adams's other works - but no spoilers here!

 

This is the first Doctor Who "novel" I have read, and, overall, I was very entertained and am highly impressed by Roberts's work.  The book is easy to read, and doesn't blind the reader with the potentially daunting scientific background, leaving a pleasant memory of the Tom Baker and Romana era of the series.  I understand that Roberts is currently working on a novelisation of City of Death, one of the most popular Doctor Who stories of all time (pardon the pun!), and which was also scripted by Douglas Adams, and I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

 

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is that it has inspired me to contemplate writing my own Doctor Who adventure, so, with a bit of luck, and a lot of hard work, maybe someday in the not-too-distant future, someone will be writing a blog review about my Doctor Who novel(s).

 

Awesome!! :)

 

Now go out and buy Shada: The Lost Adventure by Gareth Roberts today!

 

Doctor, Doctor! Doctor Who?

So, as I am still recovering from the revelations in The Name of the Doctor, the finale episode of season 7 of the new Doctor Who series, I find myself both enthralled and somewhat confused over the introduction of one of Britain's greatest character actors, John Hurt, as The Doctor.

 

To say I was totally blown away, and very emotional, over the possibility of John Hurt taking on the role of one of the most iconic and beloved characters in British science-fiction is an understatement. John has proven himself a master of his craft since the early 1960's, but really came to prominence for his portrayals of Quentin Crisp in The Naked Civil Servant - a ground-breaking expose of homosexual lifestyles in the '30's-'50's - and the insane but omnipotent Caligula in I, Claudius.  The power of these roles stamped him as one of the most accomplished actors in the British pantheon, and won him admiration around the world.

And now, after decades of achievements and accolades, this enigmatic icon is going to play The Doctor!! How spine-chillingly wonderful!!

 

And then the questions started! Having not been following any prior anticipatory announcements, pronouncements and limitless speculations by the myriad of bloggers and critics, I had not even heard or read any of the rumours about John Hurt being involved in Doctor Who in any capacity. So now my mind started running overtime!

• How will the transformation between Matt and John occur?
• Does this mean Matt's time as The Doctor is over? It seemed rather short!

But then I read some of the background materials rapidly appearing on the internet, which spawned even more questions!

• John will be the 9th Doctor? How does that impact the "current" 9th Doctor's reign?
• If he is not allowed to call himself The Doctor because of his transgressions against The Doctors' prime directive (very Star Trek 2nd Gen, I must say!), what will he be called, if his "real name" is still to be kept secret?
• If Matt is now the 12th (and therefore the Last?) incarnation, does this mean we are in the end game of Doctor Who as a whole, 50 years on?
• Will we now see the transformations between Paul McGann and John Hurt, and John Hurt and Christopher Eccleston? Are these even being contemplated?
• Now that the concept of retro-active storylines - going back to a new 9th Doctor timeline - have the BBC opened the door to resurrect stories for Paul McGann (yes, please!!) and the shortened life of Christopher Ecclestone?

I know I am far from alone in wondering about all of these, and many additional, impacts from the revelations so far, and I am also sure that the BBC will be planning a whole series of enticing announcements, leaks and cast interviews to keep us all on the edge of our seats until November 23. And could this be the most anticipated episode and series of Doctor Who ever??  You had better believe it!!

 

It is going to be a long and inquisitive Summer!!

Margaret Thatcher - R.I.P.

I heard the news today - oh boy!

I can hear the mindless rhetoric of the Twitterverse already, denigrating and ridiculing "The Iron Lady"! Sad - so, so sad!

 

Personally, I happen to think Margaret Thatcher was the greatest post-World War 2 leader Great Britain ever had, and the second greatest Prime Minister, after the great ol' bulldog himself, Winston! So put that in your pipes and smoke it!

 

Yes, I can hear the grinding of teeth and fits of mindless rage from the bovver boys in the great North-East of England, my homeland. They will be saying the same old BS - she destroyed the shipyards, she destroyed the steelworks, and, worst of all, she destroyed the mines. All those people out of work. Whine, whine, whine! But, let me tell you - I was there - and she didn't have to do that, because the Trade Unions had already made those industries so unprofitable with their outrageous practices and malicious and, let's face it, purely greedy demands, they were doomed anyway. And, if the North-East couldn't see that, through their far-left socialist conditioning, then they deserve as much of the blame over what happened to them as any Conservative government. And they will never recover, because there's just not enough "service industry" available in those small towns to replace those heavy industries.

 

Of course, when it was time to save the Falklands from the invading Argentinians, she was the greatest leader and admired beyond reason then, even by the North-East! Our nationalist jingoism couldn't have been stronger, nor the entire country prouder of our Iron Lady then, could they? How fickle their beliefs and fervour were!

 

Such is the life of a politician and world class leader.  Maggie could hold her own with the biggest and best of them, and was a damn sight more intelligent and capable than most! And, once they'd unceremoniously bundled her off into so-called retirement, she held her head up high, and continued to advise and assist leaders all over the world. Now that's class!

 

So, Rest In Peace, Margaret Thatcher - you deserve it.

 

At least until the bovver boys and vandals deface your tombstone and destroy your epitaphs!

UPDATE - April 9, 2013:

Alas to be proven right already! It was saddening and sickening to watch the news last night and see the thickies celebrating Margaret Thatcher's death with champagne and parties.  How absolutely demeaning to Britain, and what a perfect example of the pathetic, peurile socialist proletarian behaviour I have come to expect from the British Working Classes!
 

 

 

The Best Gift Ever??

Like the majority of the male sex, I have to admit to not being very good at buying gifts for my wife. It's not that I am not romantic - although I am sure there could be some discussion about that - nor is it that I don't care. I just seem to get so involved in the other aspects of life that personal matters are not top of my priority list - even when they should be. Added to that, again like most males, I am a world class procrastinator outside of the work regime, so personal things tend to get left to the last minute - or even later!!

Sure, you may say, that makes me such a bad husband, but, in my defence, as weak as it is, I am not alone!!

Then, even if you do get something in time for the big event - whether it's a birthday, Valentine's day, Easter, Christmas, an anniversary, etc, there's the dilemma over what to buy! Diamonds might be forever, or be a girl's best friend, but you don't get much for a large amount of money! Lingerie, while good for you, is frowned upon as sexist or chauvanistic - apart from often being downright uncomfortable. Then there's the size issue - when is an 8 not and 8? When it's a 6 or a 10, or any other number you care to choose from! And clothing is just as fraught with quandaries! Apparently, I have the knack of being able to buy the fuddy-duddiest of styles that not even my grandmother would be seen in! Gift cards indicate a lack of imagination and an abdication of responsibility! Make her buy her own gift, that's right! Chocolates and candies are a dietary no-no, indicating you want to make your beloved wider, while buying anything to do with the household or the kitchen indicates your belief that a woman's place is slaving over a hot stove, or vacuuming and dusting, or washing and ironing your clothes!

And, of course, flowers wither and die, despite their temporary beauty! And who can trust restaurant food any more, let alone find a decent, romantic eatery?

In recent years, though, I do have to admit, to having bought for my wife what I consider to be the best gift I have ever bought her.  "What is this wonderous item?" I hear you ask with baited breath! What marvel have I uncovered that has achieved such a pinnacle of success?

A laptop computer!

That's all? A laptop computer!!

Yup! So, you may ask - and I know you will - what makes this laptop computer so much more successful as a gift than any of those other items listed above?

It's really quite simple. My wife has used that laptop every day since the day I gave it to her, over 3 years ago! How many dresses get worn every day for over three years? Unlike men, women don't wear the same pair of shoes everyday. Jewellery is kept for unusual and/or special occasions, and food and chocolate would have long been flushed away down the proverbial you-know-where!! Lingerie would have worn out, or been thrown out, and kitchen and household utensils would have been thrown back at you - and deservedly so!

Sure, the laptop is far from perfect! It has its moments and weaknesses - crappy power supply, memory-hungry software, filthy viruses spread by small-minded malicious morons, etc, etc, etc! But, nevertheless, it has been resorted to every day as often as possible, whether for research in home decor, utensils, appliances, design, or communications with long-lost friends and social networking, or just playing games for light relief, or finding a myriad of childhood and teenhood tunes on Youtube - it's ability to satisfy requirements is endless!

It is, beyond doubt, the best gift I have ever bought for my wonderful wife, who deserves so much more from me than I tend to give! (That's her being nibbled by that giant serpent behind this posting!!! ;>) And I know how much she appreciates it, because she still uses it every day! Who knows - maybe as a thank you, I can get her to use that cat-o-nine-tails on me I bought last Christmas, hmm? ;)

And now all I have to do is find a new gift for her upcoming birthday that will be every bit as popular and useful as her laptop!!

Fat chance of that!!!