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Continue reading →: The Hill of Dreams by Arthur MachenLucian Taylor, a rector’s son, comes of age in a rural Welsh village in the early 1900s, then wanders the world on a quest for beauty, through art and literature, dreamscapes, drugs, and of course, love.Frequently he teeters perilously between the blurred realms of fantasy and reality. It fits the…
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Continue reading →: The Mainalon TrailI’m in the northern Peloponnese in the Arcadia region, the place the poet Virgil described as having “springs cool as can be, and groves, and softest grass” where shepherds try their hands at poetry, live lives of ease and sing to their flocks, “Together in Arcadia we would live, And…
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Continue reading →: King Blood by Jim Thompson
Thompson is such a great writer that I sense he knew what he was doing when he wrote this. This is far from his best, and the sort of story that can be described as unpleasant, one that leaves a nasty taste in the mouth.Thompson is good at writing strong…
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Continue reading →: Big RiverI’ve just spent a couple of very pleasant days with my brother, Nick, and his partner, Lou. They were in their campervan, returning back to England from the Turkish coast, where they have a house and spend part of the year. After some deliberation, I managed to find a suitable…
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Continue reading →: War Pony
This is a dual coming of age film about two young Oglala Lakota boys at key stages in their childhood; one positive, the other pretty much the opposite. Bill in his early 20s, is already the father of two sons. He is hard-working, taking any opportunity to earn a bit…
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Continue reading →: Leaving Lefkada – back up north for a couple of days
Roja didn’t enjoy Karya, in particular the small cottage we took for three days to sit out the storm. It rained heavily for twelve hours then wind gusts of up to 100 kph for the next twelve. I put my head out the door in the early hours and wet…
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Continue reading →: Rififi
Du Rififi Chez Les Hommes (France 1955) In film noir the portrayal of the characters and the plot force the viewer to identify with the bad guy. There can be good ‘bad guys’ and bad ‘bad guys’ and a sliding scale in between. It’s generally a tougher job on the…
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Continue reading →: Sitting out the Storm in KaryaI’m sitting out Storm Apollo in the hill village of Karya, still on Lefkada island. It’s been a week of storms, interspersed with some fine warm days, but this is a big one, lasting about 15 hours, and named, with rain falling heavily as subsequent thunder showers today, Saturday, followed…
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Continue reading →: Witchcraft: A History in 13 Trials by Marion Gibson
Should further incentive be necessary to read this informative and engaging book, the author is a professor at Exeter University specialising in Magical Literature. How very wonderful.. One of the reasons this succeeds where many have failed is by giving its attention to the lives of the women on trial…
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Continue reading →: Cape Lefkas, Lefkada, Ionian IslandsOther than for ten minutes on the Croatian coast a few weeks ago, I hadn’t seen the sea since Shetland in August. Fast forward on three months and another island, though it couldn’t be more different. Even off-season there is quite a large population, just under 30,000 with quite a…
To live more widely
supera superiora sequi
SafeReturnDoubtful is my alias.
Where is Andy?
I was so much older then…
Quote of the Week
Alice asked the Cheshire Cat, who was sitting in a tree, ‘What road do I take?’ The cat asked, ‘Where do you want to go?’ ‘I don’t know,’ Alice answered. ‘Then,’ said the cat, ‘it really doesn’t matter, does it?’
Lewis Carroll
Safe Return Doubtful 