Owner: Gary William Murning Online URL:http://garymurning.wordpress.com/ Join Date: Fri, 02 May 2008 05:22:10 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: A blog for lovers of books, writing, literature, science and the rational approach to life. Site statistics:Click here
Karma My Arse. 2008-05-28 12:03:36 Oh, don’t you just love these brainless Hollywood types who manage to remember one vaguely interesting and “like, you know, spiritual-sounding” word and then insist on letting it roll off their tongues whenever the opportunity arises — like they actually know what they’re talking about?
I refer, of course, to Sharon Stone’s ridiculous comments attributing the [...]
Summertime (Yeah, Right!) 2008-05-28 04:43:35 Three things I won’t be doing this summer:
Watching Big Brother. Enough is enough! People-watching is fun, when we’re talking real people and not hand-picked conflict/fuck droids!
Getting a tan. This is England, what can I say?
Publicising my new novel. That’s next summer.
Three things I will be doing this summer:
Watching Wimbledon in HD and on Interactive.
Reading War [...] Read more:Summertime
, Right
Target Reached. 2008-05-30 05:14:48 Today (like, a few minutes ago), I hit 90,000 words with Children of the Resolution. The end is near, I’m over-the-moon with the quality of the writing and, as zonked-out as I am, I can’t wait to continue.
I am, however, going to force myself to have the weekend off. Wouldn’t do to be silly at [...] Read more:Target
Lazy, Foggy Sunday. 2008-06-01 12:01:34 Okay, I did what I said I’d do and took off the whole weekend (thus far.) It’s true I did a little editing this morning, but that doesn’t count. (You really should stop pulling faces like that; the wind might change and then you’d have to stay that way. Forever.) It qualifies as a break [...] Read more:Foggy
, Sunday
Ideas (or Few and Far Between.) 2008-06-03 11:44:40 Encouraged by the interest being shown in my little (story of my life) idea for a blog ring/group, it occurred to me today that now might be a good time to come up with an explanation of how it will work.
I have to admit, it was a bit of a spur of the moment idea. [...]
Mythical Moth Found on Web. 2008-06-02 12:08:01 ‘Mr Young said: “It is now up to us to try and find out where the moth breeds and to make sure that its habitat is safe.”‘
Erm…
‘Apart from the original 1853 specimen, only four others have ever been found in the UK.’
… I wish you luck. Read more:Mythical
Reading — an Interactive Medium. 2008-06-04 12:36:05 Non-readers are so often inclined to conclude that reading is a passive passtime. One sits, book in hand, and the written word does all the work. “I’d rather be doing something,” they say.
As a reader and, more to the point, a writer, I know how ridiculous this is. However rich the layers of my work, [...] Read more:Reading
, Medium
A Bra Constrictor. 2008-06-04 04:58:21 Well, it’s a rare and beautiful day in my little corner of the world, so I’m taking it off and spending it wisely — breathing deeply whilst occasionally proclaiming how wonderfully blue the sky looks.
But before I do, I just wanted to share this with you. One of my favourite Pete and Dud sketches.
[...]
Blow Up Your Car — Newly Defined. 2008-06-05 12:17:48 All right, it may never happen. Chances are, someone will decide there’s a far better way to make lots of money and this will be the last you or I will hear of it.
But if it does happen, I want one! Why? Well, simply…
” [...] it’s the fact that you buy the car online, it [...]
Human Decency — Teachers Exempt? 2008-06-06 12:13:48 Whilst catching up on my feeds yesterday, I came across a disturbing article (disturbing because of the appalling events it reported) from my friend and fellow blogger, Lottie. The piece tells of the treatment received by a kindergarten pupil, Alex Barton.
Alex is five years old and is in the process of being diagnosed with Asperger’s [...] Read more:Exempt
The Thong Bandits! 2008-06-08 05:17:36 I promise to behave — I won’t say a word about whether or not they were washed — but I just couldn’t resist sharing this with you:
Colorado police say two suspected robbers dubbed the “thong bandits”, after they used women’s underwear to disguise themselves, have been caught.
At My Command. 2008-06-07 08:58:40 Yesterday, after reading Joseph’s blog post concerning Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 voice recognition software, I decided to order myself a copy and give it a go.
I have used voice recognition software in the past (mainly IBM’s earlier products) and found it actually extremely useful and surprisingly workable, at least when compared to the alternatives — [...]
An Almost Midweek Roundup. 2008-06-10 12:07:20 Something I’ve discovered recently is just how popular the word “thong” is as a search term. It seems it’s guaranteed to attract a few hits, at least. With this in mind, I will from now on be dropping the word thong into my posts wherever possible. Be warned!
Seriously, though, there are a few things pending [...] Read more:Almost
, Midweek
Deal or no Deal? 2008-06-11 12:08:46 Okay, it’s time to make a confession. I have been known to watch Deal or no Deal (the UK version) whilst eating my tea. For a while, I found it quite riveting. The format is simple and so is the host. What better combination for a gameshow could there possibly be?
Just lately, however, it’s begun [...]
Children of the Resolution. 2008-06-13 05:05:34 The end is in sight. I have just hit 101,000 words and I’m incredibly happy with it. Chapter Sixteen will soon be completed and then there will only remain Chapter Seventeen and an epilogue. Two or three weeks work, now I have the voice recognition software (which is proving invaluable!)
More later.
[...] Read more:Resolution
, Children
(Please Don’t) Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go. 2008-06-12 12:14:37 Privacy. Something we all naturally like to protect, especially in this day and age. The smart people hold something back and are understandably outraged when someone does something that undermines this.
So I occasionally find myself sympathising with certain celebrities. Not often, admittedly, but just occasionally, when the press pushes it just a little bit too [...] Read more:Please
Destiny Calls… (Texts Cost £1. 50 Per Received Text.) 2008-06-15 12:18:09 I seem to be having something of a pick on celebrities week but, let’s face it, they do make it easy, don’t they? And, just because something is easy, it doesn’t mean it isn’t fair game, in my opinion. Especially when people are being duped out of encouraged to part with their hard earned cash.
“Last [...] Read more:Destiny
From Big Bang to Us. 2008-06-14 11:37:21 I haven’t done a science related post in a while, if memory serves me well, so today I thought I’d share this great YouTube series on the history of the universe with you. There is much in it that many of you will already be familiar with, but it is nonetheless an excellent, simple explanation [...]
Living Inside the Story. 2008-06-16 12:04:41 After a good morning’s work, I decided to spend the afternoon quietly reading Kafka’s The Trial — a novel I’ve been intending to read for far too long (I read The Castle many moons ago and promised myself that I would read everything that Kafka/Max Brod had produced… finally, I’m getting round to it.)
Whilst I was [...] Read more:Living
Safe in Their Hands? 2008-06-17 12:36:03 After top-secret documents were left on a train by a Cabinet Office official last week, we now have another unforgivable security breach — this time in the form of a stolen computer from the constituency office of Hazel Blears.
Naturally, thefts happen. Ms Blears cannot necessarily be held responsible for that. What she is accountable for, [...] Read more:Hands
Dora Diamant. 2008-06-17 11:30:50 I today received a message regarding my last post (on the story of Kafka and the doll) from William Diamant — father of Kathi Diamant, author, actress and Kafka researcher.
William kindly wrote to inform me that the story of Kafka and the doll was originally told by Anthony Rudolf who, unfortunately, I know nothing about. [...]
The Gastropod Information Superhighway. 2008-06-18 12:23:36 Ever wanted to send an e-mail and have it arrive at its destination a few weeks later, the way snailmail does? No, me neither.
But for the sake of argument, say that you did. Imagine, perhaps, that you wanted to invite someone to a special event but didn’t actually want them to come. You know, an [...]
Take Me Back To Robben Island! 2008-06-26 12:09:33 Okay, picture the scene. You’re possibly the world’s most famous former political prisoner. You have lousy taste in shirts. You really can’t dance, though you are quite willing to give it a shot. You’re the former president of South Africa, the first to be elected in fully representative democratic elections — and your 90th birthday [...] Read more:Robben
, Island
The Final Curtain. 2008-06-25 11:50:50 And, so, Children of the Resolution is slowly coming to a close. The final chapter is almost complete and the epilogue should only take a day or two. The end of next week, at the very latest, should see me proofing and editing.
I’m not sure how I’ll feel once its complete. I do know that [...] Read more:Final
, Curtain
If I Were an Alien… 2008-06-25 05:23:12 … I would surely hope that I could think of somewhere better to visit than Liverpool (not that Liverpool isn’t a lovely place, of course, but, I mean, Cilla came from there and we wouldn’t want ET thinking that we are all like that, now, would we?!) Read more:Alien
Saving the Planet. 2008-06-24 12:20:05 One more George video…
Once again he perfectly sums up my feelings on this subject. Wonderful, you old, dead motherfucker! Read more:Saving
Five Phrases. 2008-06-24 11:30:52 The following five phrases all fall into the “I never want to hear it again”-category.
Two rule-breaking housemates go to Big Brother jail.
And God created…
John Leslie.
I do not feel sufficiently committed to your material to offer representation.
Credit crunch.
Especially if they’re all used in the same sentence. Read more:Phrases
You Can’t Say That. 2008-06-23 12:13:46 I’ve been thinking about the death of George Carlin for the past few minutes — specifically his Seven Words You Can Never Say on TV routine, which can be seen in my previous post.
In 1972, Carlin was arrested in Milwaukee for disturbing the peace after performing this act and, even though I don’t know a [...]
George Carlin, RIP. 2008-06-23 05:12:54 Cult comedian, GeorgeCarlin
aged 71, has died in California of heart failure.
Warning: this clip contains material that some may find offensive. Read more:George Carlin
Near Death Experiences. 2008-06-21 12:12:46 Now, I’m sceptical about many things — UFOs, ghosts, god (actually, the latter goes a lot further than mere scepticism!), Gordon Brown’s ability to steer us through these difficult economic times, you get the idea. So it was with interest that I read of a new academic book, written by an intensive care nurse from [...]
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