E is for exasperated...

This week the theme is the letter E, and E is for exasperated.

Why?

Because so far I have not had that much success pursuing my career offshore. 

I've sent out e-mails and C.V's to companies that provide catering services offshore with little luck so far. An offshore careers day I spent £30 on turned out to be a waste of time and no more than a few stalls in a tiny village hall that offered very little and I have started to lose a bit of hope this week after spending so much money on my BOSIET. And MIST courses.

I mean I know they last four years, but I'm not known for being patient. 

It's like I'm also waiting for my first collection of short stories to be edited, and I know that all the Editiors at my publishers are busy and I know there is a waiting list, but still I want it now! I don't like waiting.

At the minute, that seems like all my life seems to be about at the moment...waiting. 

Hence why this week's theme is Exasperated. 

It could also stand for Executive Chef of which we have a new one at work, but the less said about him the better. 

Till next week and the letter F....

Laters. 

(Impatient smiley)  

A few thoughts on why I didn't take up the ice bucket challenge...

Just found this Blog post that I was going to post last year, and thought I'd post it now.

Seems all a bit out-of-date now, but here it is anyway...


So, there's this whole thing going around for charity called the ice bucket challenge. It's a bit like the no-make-up selfie thing that did the rounds last year, except you get wet. And cold. And essentially look like a tit. 

As far as I know, and to the best of my knowledge, no one has nominated me to do it yet, which is good. Because I wouldn't take part even if I was nominated. 

Why? I hear you ask. Is it because I am just a kill joy? 

No, contrary to the opinion of some, that is not the reason. My reasons are far deeper than that, and by the time I finish this post, hopefully a few of you might agree with what I am going to say.

Firstly and foremost, water is PRECIOUS. There are plenty of places in this huge, great big world of ours that don't have any water. Places where people have to walk ten, twenty, thirty miles sometimes further just to find enough water to live; and they do this EVERYDAY. 

I shared a Meme on my Facebook page the other day, and if I remember tonight when I am on the P.C and not my tablet, I will share it on here for all of you. It shows a group of people all participating under the heading: America. (Please note: I am not just singling Americans out here, I know people worldwide are taking part in the challenge, but that IS what the Meme says).

Underneath, a picture is shown of a young joy drinking out of a small, what looks like, bottle top of water, obviously living in some third world country. Below him, the heading reads Africa. 

I'll let you think about that for a minute, give you time to let that sink in. Above, all those people are needlessly wasting water, taking part in a challenge admittedly for a good cause, but not thinking of the bigger picture. Below is a young boy who is lucky to have ANY water, let alone the ice cold refreshing water found in the buckets those people are tipping over their heads in a frivolous, thoughtless gesture. No doubt his small mouthful of water will be warm, tepid, and about as far from cool and refreshing as yiu can get, but don't you worry about him, or even spare him a thought. You do your challenge, then make yourself feel good by donating a small amount of money that is just enough to ease your conscience.

Imagine if that was your child? Too far? Well, consider this: we live in an age where there are too many people on the planet and continually dwindling resources. We live in an era of global warming and drastic climate change. Water is a resource. Is it too much to think that in another hundred years, maybe less, water might become an invaluable resource as it becomes scarcer and scarcer to find? Unlikely. Maybe. But not an implausible scenario by a long shot. Okay, the chances are small right now that that little boy could ever be your own child, because through the sheer element of chance you have been fortunate enough to be born in a land where water is in abundance and not a commodity, but how about this? Maybe he could turn out to be one of your children's children? Or your children's children's children? That is a very real possibility.

But that's okay, right? Because when they are sitting there, desperate for water, dying in the midst of drought, they can sit back and watch the funny video grandma once made of her tipping a bucket of water over her head, and laugh about the time when no one ever thought about there might come a time when there wasn't any water.

There are other reasons why the ice challenge is a foolish one. I could mention the article I read today about how you take the risk of developing very real hypothermia from undertaking this 
challenge if you are not careful, though at the time you might not notice any symptoms. I could tell you how I read that doing this could cause your heart to skip a beat in sudden shock, and in rare cases be the cause of sudden and unexpected death, but all these pale in significance to one simple fact: water is PRECIOUS.

Maybe not to you, living your life of luxury, but to some. 

If you want to donate to a good cause, why do you need an excuse? Donate away, I'm not disputing that. Just please, if yio need to make yourself look like a idiot to do it, find another way.

The argument for this challenge can be made that it is helping raise awareness for A.L.S, but even there I have an issue. Why?

Because although I keep seeing the videos, watching all these celebrities taking part, I so far have seen nobody actually talking 
about what A.L.S actually is. I had to look it up, and when I discovered it is Lou Gehrig's disease, at lest then I had more of an inkling, but nobody seems to be saying a lot about the actual disease, unless it is just me not seeing the posts. How then, is that raising awareness?

Likewise, I have seen very few people providing evidence that they have donated. My friend, Lainy, deserves a mention because following her video the other day, I saw her post a photo of her phone showing she had donated her £5 and the response thanking her, but she is one of only a handful. How many are just jumping on the bandwagon without parting with their money? More than a few, I would estimate. 

I'm not says everyone is doing this, but I'm sure there are a few.

As it is, for obvious reasons, I'd much rather my money went to a Diabetes charity I'm afraid.
Even then, you won't catch me wasting what is one of some countries most precious resource just to look a fool.

I can do that any day of the week, thank you very much!

A is for anxiety....

As part of a new 26 week challenge, I am undertaking to write a new Blog post every week each featuring a successive letter of the alphabet. Sometimes, as in this week, I might even write more than one based around the same letter.

As this is week 1 of 26, of course the letter is A and today my Blog post is all about anxiety.

It is no secret on here that I have experienced such feelings before, but now I am experiencing them again for wholly different reasons. I am about to make some big changes in my life and the truth is, that scares me just a bit.

I have decided to try and go and work offshore. Still cheffing, just in a very different environment, and part of that involves doing an in-depth sea survival course.   

Now I can swim, but I am not overly confident in the water so this is a small bit of a worry. One of the things I have to do is get myself out of an upside down, submerged helicopter simulator so that I can prove I would know what to do in a crash.

I'm not afraid to admit that scares me a bit. I have watched a couple of videos and it doesn't look that pleasant. What is more, doing the courses I need is expensive so it is imperative I pass and get my certificates - no pressure then!

Why am I doing this? 

Well apart from better money, when I am home I will see more of my family. It means being away from them for up to three or four weeks at a time, but when I come back I will see them for the same amount of time or very close to it.

It tears me up missing so much of my daughter's life at the moment. It almost feels like she is growing up without me at times. This way, I get to see more of her and spend more time with her and Mrs.Sparky won't need to work at doing the bloody silly job she does now where she ends up working from home almost as often as she is in the office.

I start the course on Monday 2nd February and the courses I am doing last all week. I am trying to prepare myself mentally for what I have to do, but a big part of me is bricking it too. Thankfully the helicopter bit is just a small part of the course. 

I just have to remind myself that I need to do this to help change my life. I need to stay calm and focused - something that is hard to do when your brain is screaming at you 'What have you done?'

The thing is I can't keep doing what I'm doing now.

My life needs to change.

And only I can make that change.

Change is scary, but sometimes change is also good. That doesn't stop me feeling anxious though....wish me luck!

This is the kind of thing that I will be doing, just in case you're interested...


*gulp*
 

Back from the brink...

So, there's me saying that I'm gonna keep up this posting everyday then I go and disappear for almost a month! Writers, heh?!? Can't bleedin' trust any of them!

Of course, I have been busy. I've started ANOTHER new project that's going well and that is intended to be another novella like Time Of Tides. Except maybe longer. I'm keeping that one under my hat for now, but I'm sure when I reveal what it's about you'll be as excited about it as me!

The six author Vampire collaborative piece I was involved in, Feral Hearts, will be coming out shortly, and I have agreed to sign up for another entitled Lycanthroship featuring Werewolves this time around.

Of course, the big news of the day is that Time Of Tides is now available in print! In a collector's Edition no less that also contains my zombie cow story, Dairy of the Dead, and Amanda Lyons' haunting novella, Wendy Won't Go.

There is one edition that features her novella first and has a bonus short story from her in, as well as Tides, and my edition where Tides comes first followed by my short and then Amanda's story. So if you are a fan of hers, you can get a bonus story from her, or if you are a fan of mine, you can get a bonus short from me!

Either way, both our novellas are together in one volume in two separate editions.

Here's the link to my edition: 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Tides-Collectors-Stories-Amanda/dp/1500459690/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1405685851&sr=1-1&keywords=time+of+tides+collectors

                                              ****
In other news, a friend of mine is close to completing the graphic novel/ comic book version of my short story, When Death comes to call.

Roy is a talented artist, and I very much doubt this will be the last time you see us working on something. Currently going through University studying Art, you can check out his page here to see more of his work: 

 https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fatman-Art/191520824372119?fref=ts


Meanwhile, here's a sneak preview of some of what he has come up with for my short story...

More information on me and my current projects I'm working on, can also be found talked about here:

http://www.jellingtonashton.com/blog

Day 27: I was a teenage werewolf...

So, not long left to go, and I will have fully completed my challenge! 

Just time then to fill you in on how it's going on my latest project!

I may have mentioned last night that I have started work on a six author collaboration that is a kind of companion piece to the Vampire one, Feral Hearts - remember that name- that WILL be coming out in print and E-book sometime in the next few weeks!

Well, today have had a good day writing out a rough plan, and starting to tell my opening story that sets up my character and begins her story. In fact, wrote over 2,000 words and almost completed the first act of my two act beginning.

Dead hyped about this. It was a project I was originally not involved in, but which had come to a stall. It started getting off the ground last October.

Well, I helped persuade Catt to dust it off the shelf if I could be involved in it and help her get this out to tie in with the hopeful future success of vampire novel, Feral Hearts.

I really WANT to get my name out there, and if people will not step up to the bar then I will get involved and utilize it as another prime example of all my work and my writing!

I am so stoked now to finally be involved, and dead excited that I have my opening all done in my head already, bar typing it up.

Until tomorrow,

laters 'taters!

Darkness comes.....

Coming soon from J.Ellington Ashton Press: 

Not worried yet about Global warming and how it is affecting the planet?? You probably should be....

As violent storms begin to erupt all across the globe and torrential rain begins to fall, one family take their boat out onto the Norfolk 
Broads to try and escape the flooding and
 widespread damage and devastation happening all around them. Large parts of the Norfolk coastline have fallen into the sea and all the local rivers and streams have burst their banks with similar occurrences  being reported all across the world. 

But as the family set sail, desperately searching for hope or some form of salvation from the storms, they quickly realise that even out amongst the rising waters, nowhere is safe!

The Dark Times are upon us, these are The End Of Days....

This is The Time Of Tides....

                                      ~
Yes, this is to announce that very shortly (it is currently in Edits) my debut 20K novella, Time Of Tides, is going to be released. Available singly at first and then as part of an Anthology with several other Scary Big Fish Tales, this will be my first release on its own! 

The absolutely awesome Susan Simone has done a brilliant job on my cover with a very limited brief in a remarkable period of time and I have to thank her immensely for the excellent job she has done. 

You should also check out her novels, Silent Heart and Under A Twisted Moon here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Susan-Simone/e/B00CBI45O6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1383406399&sr=1-1 

Both books come highly recommended from me and I have read and reviewed both of them!

More updates soon!

Ooops.....doesn't time fly?

Ooops! What can I say right about now? I hadn't realised it had been quite so long since I last updated my Blog; knew I had been a bit lax but like...wow?!? Ooops! Sorry guys, kind of forgot all about for a while....

You would be forgiven for assuming this Blog was now dead; abandoned and left to rot in Cyberspace, never to be returned to ever again. Not so! Honestly, I've just been very, very busy.....

Firstly, I have been unfaithful. Not to Mrs.Sparky ~ I like my nuts where they are and if I ever cheated on her, I have no doubt that I would be unlikely ever to be able to have sex again! No, I have been kind of guest-writing for a couple of other Blogs. Book review sites yanno?

The first of these is  http://thetbrpile.weebly.com/  where I regularly contribute with book reviews on books I am sent three or four times a month. Though many of the books reviewed there fall into the Erotic fiction/ romance Genre, obviously I don't review them but instead get to review exciting new titles by up and coming Thriller/ Sc-fi and Horror authors. A lot of times I am forced to be brutally honest and I don't always enjoy the books sent me but, equally, it was how I discovered two of last year's top titles ~ The Icarus Void and The Blackwater Flood, both of which topped my 1001 list!

The other site I review for is http://masqueradecrew.blogspot.co.uk/  though I have not been writing for them as long and have reviewed only about three or four books for them so far. 

Anyway, I really came back because I really need to start updating my 1001 Authors And Books To Read Before You Die list as I have found plenty of more books to join the ranks that I simply not had time to add until now....firstly, let's cover the last three entries that I have listed but not yet talked about....

 Every so often, a book comes along that is absolutely jaw-droppingly good and simply quite amazing. A book that makes you stop and think; that thrills you, entertains you, keeps you hooked and even chills you to the bone.

Extinction Point is that book!

The first in an ongoing series by author, Paul Antony Jones, Extinction Point is set in the not too distant future (where all good sci-fi is set!) and focuses around a Global Extinction Event which sees much of humanity wiped off the face of the earth. How much of humanity, we are not sure but this first book takes us through what happens as seen through the eyes of investigative journalist, Emily Baxter; a young, intrepid roving reporter who soon finds herself in a Manhattan empty of anyone else but her.......

Anyone human that is.......

It starts with red rain; big, red thick drops that fall from the sky in cities all across the globe. For some reason, Emily is compelled to stay out of the downpour and keeps her distance from anyone who has been contaminated by it. It is not until she reaches her Offices that she discovers that similar rainfall has been reported all across the world. And then people start getting sick. And after they get sick, then they start to die....very quickly and very, very messily!

As one of the few people who has avoided contact with the rain, Emily manages to survive but finds herself alone in a vast, unpopulated city. Determined to escape and find refuge....other survivors....anything, Emily prepares to leave New York. But she is not alone. The red rain was just the beginning......

Something is colonising the earth......

This book is simply beyond words! Someone on Amazon has commented that the only downside of this book is that the next chapter is still in process and urges the author to hurry up and I concur! This is an amazing novel that moves at its own pace, merely revealing more and more layers of mystery without really giving us any answers. One scene in Central Park left me breathless and dying to know what was going on and where this book will lead us on its journey. I  only read one other Sci-fi book this good last year and that was The Icarus Void by C.K.Burch! And Extinction Point definitely comes a close second only because it leaves you hanging with no second installment as yet in sight!! 

 I think I should point out that this review was written last year and, in point of fact, the second volume is now available. I have not gotten around to purchasing it yet but will do so because I enjoyed the first book so much and will let you know if it matches the suspense of the first book!

The next entry on my list that I have not talked about, but which barely needs any introduction, is the 87th Precinct novels by Ed McBain.  These long-standing Police procedural thrillers are all set in the fictional city of Isola in and around the 87th Precinct. Published over several decades, the books pretty much follow the same set of characters throughout as their lives and careers change along with the city and all pretty much cracking good reads! Occasionally you might get a duff book but, as a whole, these novels are amazing! One of the things they are most remembered for is for introducing the character of The Deaf Man; a criminal Mastermind who may or may not actually be deaf but who always taunts the 87th with little messages whenever he is in town attempting his latest heist. Invariably these heists always go wrong but it is normally not because of the boys of the 87 who are seemingly reduced to bumbling idiots when he is around as they try to solve the cunning puzzles he sets up for them. Usually as a distraction to the main event. If you have never read an 87th Precinct novel then you are missing out and if you have read them all, then you are fortunate enough to have shared in one of Crime Fiction's finest ever long-running series. I am a big, big fan and have been ever since I first picked them up as a teenager. Unfortunately McBain is no longer with us but his books live on as a lasting legacy and a testament to his superior writing ability!

Finally, the last book that I entered onto my list was Ripper by Michael Slade. I have talked about this author before but Ripper still stands as one of his greatest works.

Slade was the pseudonym for a team of Canadian Lawyers that has since been taken over by one of those Lawyers who still writes the books but now with his daughter. Ripper is set mostly on an island where a group of amateur mystery Detective authors have been summoned to compete in a mystery weekend. Zinc Chandler of the Special X Branch of the RCMP is one of the entrants, currently on sick leave after nearly being killed in one of the previous books and now left Epileptic as a result of his head injuries. His Boss thinks it will be a good test of his mental capabilities to take part; the weekend being hosted by Elvira Franklin who emerged at the end of Headhunter, the book that started this series off. 

It is not long before everyone is being slowly killed off with no way of escaping the island in a very clever tribute to Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians. I oved this and thought it one of their best books to date simply for its sheer ingenuity.

Anyway, that's about it for now but will be back soon with more updates I promise!

I have lots more books to add to my list plus some other stuff which I will share at a later date...

until then, ciao... 

 

The Long Weekend.....

Well, just thought I would pop by and tell you about the shitty weekend I just had! Truth is, I really need to vent right now and this is the ideal place to do it and get everything all off my chest!

Basically these last two weeks just gone, I have been in charge whilst Head Chef was on his regular two-week holiday that he always takes at this time of year. He came back last Wednesday, my day off, so Friday was the first time I had worked with him for approximately three weeks.(This was because I had taken a week off just before his holiday.)

Anyway, apparently we had a visit from the Environmental Health Officer and they weren't too happy. This was because of a number of issues that included dirty floor space under and around the wheels on benches, cracked floor tiles and poor maintenance issues and some items incorrectly date-labelled in fridge. For those not aware, all items in Commercial fridges have to be labelled with a day date label that signifies the day items must be used by along with a corresponding date referring to the date said item was made. Now bear in mind that I had not been there two days when the inspection took place and you would think I could not be held fully accountable. Oh no.....

H.C told me that when he came in on Wednesday that he was mostly pleased but that a few issues of cleaning (i.e: the floor around wheels under benches) needed to be addressed. BUT HE DIDN'T GET THEM DONE! Also, when I left on Tuesday, to the best of my knowledge all items in fridges were correctly labelled and dated and even if I had missed some of them, then he had two days to pick up on it and relabel or date! Bearing in mind as well that Wednesday/ Thursday were not particularly busy and he only had a wedding for 20 to serve outside of any other restaurant business he did....

And yet, when I came in on Friday, I got a right rollicking! I took the blame for a couple of date-label issues that I realised I had missed but even my fellow Sous-Chef Alan said later that H.C was out of order and normally them two are as thick and thieves and have each others back no matter whether they are in the right OR the wrong!

Anyway, Saturday he kind of apologised for the way he went off on one (quite rightly so) but then I come in Sunday and he has ANOTHER RIGHT GO ~ this time because Saturday night again, some things were not covered, date-labelled properly and the potato rumbler had not been sufficiently cleaned out or indeed cleaned out at all! This, bearing in mind, that he was there Saturday night also so should possibly have taken the responsibility for ensuring food items were put away correctly rather than instantly blaming me who had little to do with it and was busy cleaning work surfaces!?!

I will quite happily take responsibility and take blame when something is my fault but not if it isn't! I have always stated that I don't care what ppl think of me at work personally but I take issue with ppl questioning my professionalism. I have always said that no one should be able to question how well I do my job and this is a creedo I live by. They can think I am a Prick, a c***, a total arse-hole but I never want it said that I cannot do my job and do it well. It is a source of pride to me. This weekend, I feel that this has been continually questioned and has really totally and utterly wound me up, near to the point of me losing my temper and walking out. If I didn't desperately need the money, I would've walked this weekend ~ no word of a lie, believe! 

I am still mad about it now especially because I find out that H.C has been saying that whilst he was on holiday, standards dropped. Err... no they didn't; I was just more focused on the food going out properly as I had a couple of important weddings to deal with -Big weddings- whilst he was away. The main issues the EHO had were with maintenance problems that she has brought up time and again on previous visits and we though have brought these issues to Management's attention, nothing has been done! The other issues she had just compounded the whole investigation and made things worse! But while H.C has been away, I have just continued the systems HE has put in place so if cleaning jobs got missed, it is because correct systems were obviously NOT in place and that is his responsibility. Leaving aside the fact that he had two days to address these before she came around and he just didn't!

If this all sounds like I am trying to dodge a bullet, then it is not that at all. Like I say, I quite happily accept responsibility where it is relevant but I WILL NOT be made a scrapegoat. Nor will I have my professionalism questioned so brutally when I work facking hard for the Company who own the Hotel!

Anyway, that is enough about that...time to move on. My spleen has been vented. Time to forget and just try and soldier on. As my old man always says, "Don't let the bastards grind you down" and I won't! Fack the lot of them! I know I did a good job these last couple of weeks in H.C's absence and even had that told to me by a couple of third parties (just so you know it's not just me blowing my own trumpet ~ not that I could reach anyway without having a couple of ribs removed...ewwww) so stuff what H.C says. He is angry and I understand that but don't take it out on the guy who tries fracking hard to keep the ship running straight when you're not there and sheds blood, sweat and tears doing it. Take it out on those who don't pull their weight....Wanker!

Sparky out....until next time, Nannoo ~ Nannooo..........

A brief recap of what's been going on.....

Well, I promised you a quick update of what's been going on in my life since last we spoke properly and so far I haven't delivered, so here's a brief summary of recent events....

Tonight I attended a Focus Group at The Forum in Norwich which regular visitors to the City will know is the building that is host to The Millenium Library. The Group was organised by a Consumer Research Company on behalf of Norfolk's Big 3 ~ namely Africa Alive, Banham Zoo and The Dinosaur Park. Mrs.Sparky got an invite because she is on their Mailing List and I went on her behalf after qualifying through a short survey. The main focus was on them learning what kinds of effective advertising works best, why we chose the Attractions we do to visit and what could be done to improve local Attractions in general not just the Big 3. All very interesting but I must admit the big draw was that everyone got £30 cash for attending. Ka-ching!

At The Hotel, Bon Jovi Roy has just left following the appointment of Junior-Sous Alan who is under me. He is okay one supposes but nowhere near as good as his own publicity and is making a good sized job of pissing off many of the Front-Of-House staff so we will see how long he lasts. We also have a new Menu called 89 (the address of The Hotel) which we have been doing since New Year and which consists of lots of various home-made burgers served different ways, chicken dishes, fish dishes and various sides. It is quite extensive and took some getting used to (Saturday nights are now absolutely rammed) but everyone seems to be getting into the swing of it now which is good!

As far as recent Kindle books go, I have read a few since I last Blogged but will get on to some of them next time.....

Until then....laters 'taters! More updates soon!

Joining the reading revolution......

Once again I have proved to myself why I should be careful before adding book titles to my 1001 List willy-nilly as a book I might have added fails to bear up under scrutiny. I had been all set to add James Bradley's The Resurrectionist to my list when I decided to re-read it figuring, as it is a short book, it would not take me too long. Unfortunately, though I enjoyed it first time around, on second reading I found it all to be a bit disappointing!

The story begins in Georgian London with Gabriel Swift apprenticing to a renowned Anatomist only to fall foul to the pleasures of Opium and Dice and who then finds himself falling in with a notorious Body-Snatcher or Resurrectionist when it becomes time to pay his dues. His Master expels him from his Apprenticeship and things all go a bit foul. Then the story jumps to Australia in its closing chapters as Swift attempts to start a new life and leave his demons behind....

 What starts off promising ends up being a bit of a shambles. The book is good but as a complete whole feels fragmented and a bit disparate from itself at times. It is a shame as I recently recommended this to someone who has it on their TBR pile and was considering picking it up! That said, I seemingly enjoyed this more first time around. It is just a shame that it did not match up to my high expecting standards upon a second read!

In case some of you may not have known, last week was my birthday. Mrs.Sparky bought me a Touch-Screen Smart Phone that I am slowly getting to grips with with my fat and clumsy fingers, her mum bought me John Connolly's latest Charlie Parker thriller and I used the rest of my money to buy a Kindle!

I had been umming and aahing about buying one for some time but an E-mail from the Martyn Lewis Money-Saving website finally convinced me! Amazon has just released a new Slim-line version of their Kindle with no Keyboard so have slashed the price of the original models but also have begun selling refurbished Kindles at a bargain price too! Seeing as how the refurbished models still come with a years warranty, I went for the refurbished (I'm not proud!) and I love it! Though I do feel a little bit of a traitor to my Tree books, frak it!

Downloading a book to your Kindle takes sixty seconds tops, it has an in-built dictionary so no more looking up words you don't know and even has a web browser that works off of your Wi-Fi so that you can access the web! I went for the wireless option not the 3G so I cannot access the web anywhere but I don't think I will need that option at any rate. On Thursday, I was all over Facebook shouting out to the world about my new Kindle and cannot shut up about it at home either. I am so excited!

The good thing is that there are plenty of books that you can download for free. Many of the classics are out of copyright so you can get hold of them easily enough but there are also pages on Amazon of free indie authors whose novels are available for nought too! My good friend Lainy (whose Blog "So Many Books, So Little Time" {shameless plug}so encapsulates my whole philosophy when it comes to reading) has already recommended one particular E-book for me and so far, I am loving it! But I have also downloaded another couple of freebies!

All of which means that soon I have decided to start a new irregular feature: Sparky's Kindle Korner in which I will be taking an irrelevant look at some of the stuff you can download from the net for your Kindle and telling you whether or not it is any good! My plan (a work in progress) is to not give it any kind of usual rating but instead mark it in one of two categories: if I rate it Kindle that means it is a good read worth downloading, but if I rate it Kindling it means it is only good as fuel for a virtual conflagration!

Good idea or not? Thoughts would be appreciated.......

Anyway, that's all for now ~ this is Sparky signing out! Laters Taters!

The Last Supper.....

So, last night I had to attend this Company do to say thank-you to some of the staff for all our hard work at The Hotel this last year. All the upper and lower echelons of management were invited which meant that Heads Of Department and their Number Twos got to go ~ hence my invite. The gathering took place at our Sister Hotel in Norwich and consisted of a three course meal with Champagne and Canapes to begin. Sounds alright doesn't it? Actually it was one of the most boring nights of my life!

I don't mean to sound ungrateful but the thought of spending time with the majority of the people I work with in an environment outside of work REALLY does not enthrall me at all at the best of times, let alone at something as formal as a sit down meal!

It didn't exactly help that I was pretty much informed by H.C (Head Chef) that I had to attend! Those of you who know me will know that I am not particularly keen in conforming and if you tell me I have to do something then it makes me less inclined to do it!

Basically what happened is this: I walked in to work the other Friday and there was an envelope waiting for me with my invite enclosed. I opened it, looked at it and thought "What a nice gesture, that's actually quite nice of them for a change....first I get a small pay rise, now this!" Then I considered who else would be going!

Thinking about the people I might have to sit next to filled me with dread. Out of all of them, there were very few people that I actually wanted to be near. I mean sitting in a room with Fingers (nicknamed that behind his back because he is missing a couple of digits), Miss Piggy (with whom I have a bit of a shady working  relationship with at the best of times) or our Function Un-co-ordinator let alone my immediate boss, H.C, really did not appeal. Still I thought maybe it wouldn't be sooo bad.....

Then H.C comes out with a little comment about how it was the kind of thing that you couldn't really say no to, assuming I am going to turn down the invitation before I have even made my mind up, and tells Richard The Manager that he has told me I have to go! To be honest, one of the things that swayed it for me was when Richard turned around and said he was surprised I was going to go as I didn't normally do these sort of things. This kinda made me want to go so I could stick two fingers up and say "Naaah ~ see I did turn up!" Also, I was curious at seeing the other Hotel and having a swanky meal cooked for me!

The best thing about the evening was the food! After Canapes we were treated to an Amuse-Bouche of a pea and mint soup and cheese straw then given a small choice of starters and mains. I had Cajun Beef Skewers which were very tasty and a Rib-Eye steak, Medium-Rare, with Bearnaise Sauce and it was all cooked to perfection. Finally we were given a pre-dessert, a refreshing Sorbet with some Strawberries on the side, and again a small choice of desserts from which I chose Poached Pear with Ginger Ice-Cream which was simply sublime!

The food was the dogs bollocks and looked amazing and tasted really good but service was sooo slow! We sat down a little after 8 PM to eat and sweets went on the table about 10.30 PM-ish. Which was fine except I spent most of the evening bored off my tits. Not just because I wasn't drinking but also because I just found conversation with the people I work with extremely tiresome and there was only a few sparse moments where I felt relaxed and actually enjoyed myself.

I guess I went because I didn't want to look ungrateful and wanted to show I did appreciate The Company taking time out to show how grateful they were for our efforts especially as my job can often be a thankless task at times but they were still going at around 11 PM and by then, I really had had enough! It was all I could do to stop myself from just going to the toilet and making an escape without looking back! In essence, it was four hours of my life that I just lost that I could have spent sitting with my wife and daughter!

I know how this makes me look ~ it makes me seem ungrateful, selfish and a bit spoilt but you know what, who gives a Frak! This is my life, I get one chance to live it how I choose to and why should I spend it doing something I really don't enjoy? I think I summed the whole evening up aptly twice ~ first when I texted Mrs.Sparky to tell her it was "Food off of MasterChef but with the company of CrimeWatch" and then later at home when I told her I would rather put my nuts in a blender than sit through all that again!

There is a reason I don't socialise with people from work, or rather THOSE people, and last night proved it! There were exceptions, I did get on with a few of the people I spoke to there but as a whole I really could have done without all that and don't think I would do it again if I was invited. Or maybe I would because the food was pretty much top notch but I had a chance to escape a bit earlier when Mrs.Sparky's colleague Sarah made her excuses and left and I thought I would stay a bit longer so that I didn't look rude. Big error and one of two schoolboy mistakes I made last night! (The other was trying to gauge where to sit and ending up at the top of the table right next to the two Directors, only one of whom I enjoyed talking to ~ the other being his usual self, a bit of a prig!)

Needless to say, I will not be posting this Blog Post on Facebook! I don't particularly want the wrong people reading this after all and taking it the wrong way and I cannot be arsed to frak about with the Privacy settings just so only the select elite few get to read it! If you can't come on here to read this then that's your let-out and really you're not missing much by not reading this....But I do think I should add that the evening was a very nice gesture but too much about brown-nosing, networking and earning a few precious Brownie points for my liking!

I really am NOT a people person and last night kind of proved that to me! Like I tried to explain to Richard last night I do do eating out, I am just selective about the company I keep. And last night, the company really wasn't to my liking....

This is Sparky signing out and asking:  Do You wanna die young or would You rather have fun? I know what my answer would be!

Home truths.....

This week, I have mostly been discovering that I am no longer as young as I once thought I was!

To quote Samuel.L.Jackson, "Example...."

On Monday, on Radio One, it was announced that this week was Dubstep week. This basically entailed all the Radio One D.Js' promoting Dubstep and playing examples of the genre whilst also guiding listeners to the Radio One Website where you could play around with some bangin' tunes and sound effects yourself and lay down your own Dubstep track with some pretty funky beats. Monday night also saw Dubstep artist Nero playing alongside the British Philharmonic Orchestra for a one-off performance on Zane Lowe's show. Remembering how Portishead once did something similar with the New York Philharmonic, (as did Metallica I do believe > Actually I have been informed it was the San Francisco Philharmonic with Metallica!< ), I thought I'd check it out. Needless to say I was not overly impressed!

I think I must just not be cool enough for school to listen to Dubstep! The Philharmonic Orchestra was awesome but the bits with Nero really just didn't seem to fit! With Portishead it worked and, from what I have heard of the sessions with Metallica, this also was pretty awesome and amazing. With Nero....not so much! I really don't think I get the whole Dubstep Genre....it just sounds like a more grimey version of Drum And Bass of which I am not paticularly a fan but have heard a few decent examples. (I'm thinking here of a Drum And Bass version of Careless whisper I own on a Ministry of Sound album!)

It makes me sound old I know but Dubstep mostly just sounds like a noise to me! One of the worst tracks around at the minute, and apparently one of the most recent examples of Dubstep, is The Bass Cannon which, to me, just sounds like mental torture! I have to change stations whenever this comes on ~ it is just atrocious!!!!

The other reason why I think I am getting old is because on Tuesday night, traditionally the night before me having two and a half days off from work, I decided, as per usual, to play Xbox. Not a problem except that I was close to completing the main storyline on Fable 2 and was determined to finish it so that I can Download the extra content for next week on my two weeks off from work. Hmmm....well, anyway, I finished playing at 3:45 am Wednesday morning!

Wednesday I was fine but Thursday, I felt like I had a hangover! I went to bed fairly early on Wednesday night and got a good nights sleep, more than I normaly get on average, and yet still all day I felt exhausted with the fringes of a headache just bordering on the edges of my frontal lobes! I really must start to learn that I am no spring chicken any more and cannot keep behaving like I am still in my twenties! My main problem ~ I am still a really big kid!! The thing is.....I'm not sure I'm ever gonna learn........

Silly Sparky......xxxxxxx

He's Back (The Man Behind the Blog...)

Yeah Yeah....I know it's been awhile but y'all know how it is ~ life just keeps getting in the way! Bet y'all thought I had abandoned this right? No such fracking luck!! Just consider my temporary absence these last couple of months to be like my sabbatical or like my year out or something...cos now, Sparky is back innit!

Have been meaning to get back on here if only to update my 1001 favourite books and authors list which, at this rate is going to take me until I'm 1001 to finish! The problem is that I only want the best of the best going on my list and sometimes this means re-reading stuff to make sure I am certain in my own mind that they are justified a place! A tad anal perhaps? Maybe....but, case in point: until I re-read them, I was convinced I would be adding Richard Laymon's Darkness, Tell Us and Resurrection Dreams on my list. Unfortunately, after refreshing my experiences of these books, although they are both good and two of the best examples of his work, they just lacked a certain something; that spark that makes a book truly memorable above and beyond unforgettable and resonates somewhere deep inside. Non-Bibliophiles won't get this but all my friends from RISI or Babbling Books may have a stronger inkling of what I am talking about. There are certain books that just stay with you no matter how much you read them and these are the books that make the list. Others which are still great but just don't leave enough of an emotional impact on me just don't cut it I'm afraid and though I suspect that at least one of Laymon's books might feature in the future, right now the two in question, which I still thoroughly enjoy, just don't quite make the grade!

Number 23 on my list, and another book that I re-read recently and that is rather topical considering the recent movie adaptation, is Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go. It is unlikely that any of you who already have knowledge much either of the book or the movie will not already know the big Spoiler that is pretty much central to the plot but for those who DO remain unclear, suffice to say I will not spoil it here! Basically the story focuses around the lives of a close knit group of friends attending a "Special" school for certain children and follows their, sometimes sad, sometimes tragic, journey into adulthood and their inevitable fate which they have been born to fulfill. Some have criticised this book for being a little bleak but I enjoyed it and almost view it as a prequel or precursor to Michael Marshall Smith's Spares ~ which may give away the big Spoiler to some of you who may be familiar with HIS work.

Number 24 is Stephen King's final Dark Tower novel. I was not sure if this would be included as some have classed it as a little unsatisfying. Me, I enjoyed it more second time around and think it easily as strong as Wizard And Glass (Book 4)! It brings most of the plot to a tidy close and features an emotional end to the journeys of many of the central characters. As to the unsatisfying ending? Well I'm not going to be giving anything away but King does provide you with a choice. Once the main story ends, you are given the chance to leave things there with no real end to Roland's quest and no answers as to what lies at the top of The Tower. Or you can continue and read the final chapter which explains everything and brings (some kind) of closure to the series. It is this closure that many fans find unsatisfying but, in King's defence, it must have been hard to bring such an epic Opus to a close and there is a strong argument for King actually finishing this large body of work, that stretches way beyond these seven volumes and into the majority of all King's other novels, rather than leaving it to be finished after his death as has happened, for example, with Robert Jordan's Wheel Of Time fantasy series. I like this book and think it is a strong ending with many happy resolutions for those who have come this far with the oft-selfish and obsessive Roland and I personally like the way that certain aspects are brought full-circle. (you will understand if you read it!) The only thing I didn't like ~ PARTIAL SPOILER ALERT ~ was the death of Flagg which felt a bit sudden and over too quick for such a long-running character who has appeared in so many forms and guises over the years. But then, if you have read The Stand then you will know that what happens is not necessarily the end.....

That's all for now folks but more soon, I promise, in a couple of days with more books I have been selecting for my list! Trust me ~ we're not done yet!

Ciao peoples!

Sparky xxx

A little update......

First of all, for some of you on Facebook this will be the last time you read this. Facebook has changed it's Privacy settings with it's new layout meaning that many of my recent posts can be read by anyone who is on my friends list on FB. Seeing as how some of my posts refer to ppl I work with and some of them are amongst my FB friends, this is not always a good idea! With that in mind, I have decided to stop exporting my Blog to Facebook automatically and instead do it manually. That way I can edit the Privacy so that everyone except for the people I choose to exclude can see it and I know when it is going to appear rather than me writing a post and it doesn't appear on Facebook for several days! That's another thing that irritates me!!! So, if you can still read any of my future Blog posts on Facebook then it either means they are not about you, I like you or I just couldn't give a shit if I cause offence! Lol!

The latest word is that Paul Cook, the guy I told you about who had been chatting to underage girls, has allegedly been arrested! This is the latest rumour to go about but cannot confirm how true it is. Still, we can but hope that another sexual predator has been removed, however temporary, from our Society and perhaps now, Teen Chat-rooms might be a little safer. A couple of ppl have tried to defend his actions saying he is just a bit wierd, has never had a boy/girlfriend and cannot communicate with ppl which is why he then goes off to chat to young girls but let's not make excuses! I would not like someone like him chatting to my Emilie when she is older and, in my opinion, he deserves everything and more that gets thrown his way! Bloomin' sicko!

One sorry and a surprising sex-pest shocker!

First of all, an apology. In talking both to my wife and other people at The Hotel, it now turns out Bea is not the same age or older but younger than me! Ooops!

Mrs.Sparky was at great pains to inform me that the woman in question is about a year younger than her making her around thirty or thirty-one not thirty-seven plus......errrm, whoops!

My excuse is that she is South African so exposure to the elements has perhaps made her look a little older than her years but still feel I should aplogise anyway for any offence I might have caused! 

And I probably deserved the response from my wife I got when I happened to blurt out that "She must have had a hard life then!" Sometimes my brain should really engage before my mouth decides to operate! 

Anyway, it's all good and I would just like to say I am heartfeltedly sorry but basically that's just me and if you don't like what I have to say then you know where the door is!

Meanwhile, in other news, I have been greeted by the shock revelation that someone who worked at The Hotel until last year in a management/ supervisory role has been revealed on a Predators Exposed Blog as a sex pest who has been having explicit chats and camming with underage girls on teen web-chat sites!

There are full text transcripts and creepy Web-Cam pictures here of exactly what he has been getting up to!
http://predatorsexposeduk.blogspot.com/

How creepy is that? The guy left The Hotel allegedly because of stress and that he no longer wanted to work there with no goals or aims or even another job to go to! It was alleged he had few friends outside of work and was a bit of an Odd-Bod but still, no one expected this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Someone else who works at The Hotel was directed to the site and fowarded it to all to the Duty Managers by Facebook P.M. By now, word has spead round most of The Hotel as Gossip often does and everyone is now aware of it!

Talk about freaky! It just goes to show you never really know someone but I doubt anyone ever expected this! Many of the text transcripts are very recent too!

OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This about sums up my reaction! 

Found out about this last Sunday at work but when got home, the Blog had been shut down to all but invited readers ~ no doubt because someone was alerted by all the traffic they were getting as word spread around the staff but now the Blog is up and public again! Paul has been allegedly informed and, strangely, has disappeared off the face of Facebook as we know it! At least under his real name!!!!!!!!

Have decided to follow the Blog and keep tabs on any new developments! But is sooooo freaky to think that only a few months ago I ws working with him and that he was working alongside all the 16 and 17 year old penquins!


Just goes to show...you never know who you think you know and you should ALWAYS be careful whom you talk to online!!!!

Childe Roland to The Dark Tower came.....

I am obsessed with Stephen King's Dark Tower series!

 I have just finished reading the Marvel comic book series which starts with the past events depicted in Book 4: Wizard And Glass and carries on with new and original stories that take us right up until The Battle For Jerhico Hill which sees Roland first start off on his quest to reach The Dark Tower.

This has prompted me to read the Stephen King novels again as well. So far I am up to Wizard And Glass and throughly enjoying them once more but, as I remember (and I have only read the end books once), the series begins to decline from here onwards as Roland gets closer to his goal! Wizard And Glass though is truly amazing and really helps us understand the boy that once was The Gunslinger before he started out on his life's journey. It is good because in Wizard And Glass, we do not just get a flashback story but  also get to pass through an alternate version of the world featured in King's novel, The Stand!

On a slightly different note, this has also prompted me to finish my painting of The Dark Tower that I started back in Febuary. I will post a photo here in a couple of days but if you check out my Profile on FaceBook, I will also be posting photos of all my other paintings too! I cannot believe it has been nine years since I last painted anything except for a birthday card I drew for Emilie recently with a Toy Story theme. Hopefully this might inspire me to do more painting......it would be good if it did!

Anyway, I am a bit behind with my list of 1001 books and authors you really need to read before you die and haven't updated for a while so it is time to give you another!

This time, the book I wish to include is (20) The Stone And The Flute by Hans Bremmann. It tells the story of a young man, Listener, who comes to the aid of a fallen enemy in battle named Arno who gives him a mystical stone amulet in gratitude. Listener spends all his life trying to discover the secrets of The Stone and has lots of adventures in the meantime that see him turned first into a Faun and then later into stone for several decades. As well as all this, Listener is also able to find true love and ultimately he comes to the realisation that what he has finally found may be far more valuable than anything else he might have sought!

This is less one story but instead several different sub-stories all cleverly inter-linked and joined together to form a cohesive whole. It is a book I first read at a very young age but which has stayed with me through until adulthood and is still a firm favourite of mine. The test of a good book is one that stays with you through the years and loses none of its magic or charm. This is truly one of those books!