Curly's Capers

Tree view at Newark Park near Wotton-Under -Edge, Glos. Stan the Man (had a plan) They called him the Dude, which actually wasn't rude because Stan dressed smart , which set him apart from the others. Came the Second World War Stan heeded the countries' call. Joining the eighth army corps; the desert rats,a tough theatre to be sure. In Red Cross trucks, he plied  his dangerous trade. Picking wounded men from the battlefield , coming to their aid. With Stuka planes diving low,  Stan drove carefully, not too slow. He counted the time between each shell and prayed he would make it back home  from all this hell. "Beyond the Call of Duty ' was the citation; a brave man, from many; from our nation. Back home reunited his wife Stan returned to civilian life. A draper he became and soon displayed an artistic talent with garments he arrayed. A quiet and modest man  who asked for nothing ...

These engaging photographs of a Sea Eagle? in flight were taken at The International Centre For Birds Of Prey, near Newent, Gloucestershire, Birds of Prey which D., d. and myself, visited on a beautiful early autumn day on Saturday 14th September. Originally we were bound for Newent, but arriving there, we found that the town's annual Onion Fair was in full swing, so we changed plans and headed, instead for the  quite nearby Bird Centre. What a good idea that proved to be. It had been many years since I had been there and the changes were many. New buildings had been added, with walkways which gave full disabled access and a cafe, which was supplied with local produce and had its own recycling  unit. Very environmentally friendly indeed.  All of the Birds looked healthy and wonderful. They all benefited from  a rotation of regular flying. Public flights took place twice a da...

Within Within the Woman lies a little playful girl, who delights in paddling. She rushes into the sea,  uncaring and unrobing, as she goes. Within the Man lies a little excitable boy. He runs into the surf, with board and rides the surf; at one with the motion.  But this little Boy was not adventurous.  Whilst others plunged into  the briny; he merely dipped his toes. Leaping up the rocks was not his forte.  Instead crawling up with effort, he found purchase and  read books   abandoning his mind  to the  narrative.  He ignored the cadence  of the  waves and gazed at puddles, where   in  the drops of water,  he saw  a link to the oceans deep and observed eternity within. 👨👨👨👨👨 Ck 14,09/'19. Last week D. d and I went to Lyme Regis for a few day's holiday. Here are some photographs I took. A glimpse of the Jurassic co...

League One Predictions 1 Portsmouth 2 Lincoln City 3 Sunderland Portsmouth should be better than this League. The large Pompey fanbase should ring those bells and climb  into the Championship. The Cowley Brothers who have coached Lincoln up into League 1  continue to amaze  and one feels,  they are not finished yet. Their dedicated  and growing fans should  see Lincoln City  grab a second successive  promotion spot. I thought Sunderland were a  certainty last season to advance from this League, They made the play-offs, but lost 0-1 Charlton in the Final. They will surely make amends in 2020. League Two Predictions 1 Salford City 2  Leyton Orient 3  Plymouth Salford City, propelled by ex Man.Utd players financial support have risen through the lower leagues into League 2 and are probably with this momentum ready to take higher honours. Leyton Orient, who dropped through the...

With the Charity Shield  playing this Sunday (4th August ) and the Championship starting this weekend, it's high time I gave my predictions for The Premiership and  Championship Football Leagues. So here goes: Premiership 1 Manchester City 2  Liverpool 3  Tottenham Hotspur 4   Chelsea. It is impossible to see beyond City or Liverpool for the title. Spurs should carry on their impressive progress. They are safely bedded down in their new ground and seem sure to give a good account of themselves. Chelsea are my wild card. I am hoping, under the new stewardship of Frank Lampard, they will regain discipline and begin to play to their undoubted strengths. I am of course, wary of Manchester United, who must, at some time regain their form and strive for the top again. I give them another year in transition.  So, for me, two from the north west  and two  from the capital. Championship 1  L...

The Garden  1 "  We shall not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time ' Time that impudent jester leads us merrily down the  valley of confusion. A few wakes, a few sleeps and here we are back  treading the paths with  Clarence. The crisp, warm air brings  vaulted scents of perfume,  pipe smoke, laughter and  honest toil and sweat. It is that delicacy of creation; that perfection of colour and shade that shows God's microcosm of Earthly delight; contained within  the petals of a flower. What mind devised that vibrancy of colour? beyond the painter's imagination, transfixing us, to the spot; whilst  the iPhone armada  point and click    leaving  us a digital reminder  of location,  time  and memory,  with...

TS4-Teaser. Lets take this review in easy stages: 1 'Give It Up ' for the Late  Steve Jobs. He made Pixar possible by financing the project; when it looked a very risky venture. From that early inception, the company has never sold the genre of animation short on quality and minute attention to detail. Its first film was " Toy Story" in 1995 and to date twenty one films have been made by Pixar.  Collaboration with Disney, who now own Pixar started in 2005. " Toy Story 2 " appeared in 1999 and the trilogy was completed in 2010 with " Toy Story 3" 2   Many people believe that the trilogy was equal to any made. It appeared to be  a finished project. Why then after nine years was Toy Story 4 made ? Was it a shameless exercise in bean-counting in the expectation of profits at the box-office ? Could it offer a new dimension for the toys? Yes it could. 3 This film moved the centre of stage from the children to the toys themselves. In doing s...