Pen Portraits-37

JOHN FLAMSTEED (1646  -  1719)
Astronomer.
The father of modern astronomy, who corrected all the astronomical tables in use in the 17th century, who made Newton’s discoveries possible, became an astronomer by chance. Unable to attend school because of rheumatism – which he suffered throughout his life – he began to teach himself. One of the books [...]

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Not For children

Rites Of Passage ©
Daddy Q- liked stirring up things. Obviously. The man was huge, nattily dressed as he stepped out of his limousine. The town with a name as Walachoola (pop: 300) just didn’t have in it to roll a red carpet. So the man stood for a moment on that dirt road and in [...]

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Pen Portraits-36

(FRANCIS) SCOTT (KEY) FITZGERALD (American) (1896 – 1940)
Writer.
The American version of the myth of the Dying God flowered with the Jazz age he helped to create and then wilted in obscurity till his death. His books are light hearted adolescent day dreams brilliantly observed with increasingly tragic overtones. “It was fun when we all believed [...]

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The Fox-Spirit of the Tiger Caves

(Wang and Lung are identical twins and they live in a village by name Sheng. On New Years eve they set out to Po-Yen, meaning thousand patience. Po-yen is situated in the Fuchin Jiang valley in the province of Chechiang.  This extract describes what happened to them in course of a day.)
Chapter-1
A Left Handed Fox- [...]

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Pen Portraits-35

W.C. FIELDS (U.S.) (1879  -  1946)
Filmactor.
The comedy of W.C. Fields was – and remains the ultimate in screen misanthropy.
He genuinely disliked and distrusted most people – especially bankers. cops, wives, mothers in law, children, animals and negroes.
Throughout 42 films (of which only 32 are extant) he waged war on a world which he felt with [...]

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Soul of Man

There are two kinds of people. Those who love to go with the flow. Then there are those who make a stand for their convictions no matter how contrary and rough the current is. Of the latter I shall cite two. Socrates was one who stood for his convictions. Jesus is another. Mind you what [...]

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Pen Portraits-34

FRIEDRICH EBERT (German) (1871  -  1925)
Statesman.
Ebert was the first President of Germany’s Weimar Republic, so called after the constitution adopted by the National Assembly of 1919 at Weimar, which lasted until the advent of Hitler in 1933. Trained as a saddler, Ebert succeeded Bebel as leader of the social Democrats in 1913. After the outbreak [...]

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Grow Wealth Anyone?

Not all the points given herein may apply to you. There are a number of ideas that you could put to work and perhaps a few may come as a life saver. These are tried and found useful so you may benefit in these cash strapped times.
1. A community garden of 20×30 foot where a few [...]

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The Magic Bullet

Soul of man gives him a taste of truth. But does he take it seriously? To Everyman truth invariably presents itself in everyday things. Also in his daily interaction with others. No matter what his soul is it is the only article he has to rely upon. For better or worse.
The only Welshman ever [...]

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A Weekend Story-4

A Day In Slugville ©
Grandma Doris was a water rat who lived in a cottage by Harper’s Fork. By sunrise she was up and she knew it was going to be a glorious day. “Oh I am happy!”she said. “Is there anything I can do to make you happier, grandma?”asked Jamie her grandson. Silence. “Perhaps [...]

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