R's rue

Are you there Washington D.C.? Come in please! This is England calling! Today, at Southwark Crown Court in London, the rapist and sexual predator Russell Brand was put away for ten and a half years having been found guilty of his crimes. It didn't matter that he was a rich media star, famous "comedian" and "writer". It didn't matter that he had settled down in recent years with a  loving wife and their three young children. It didn't matter that he had turned to God or that he wore a crucifix. Past crimes came back to haunt him and the women he had abused earlier this century at long last achieved some kind of justice. There are at least two other cases against Brand still pending. He may yet have more years added to his sentence. I began this blogpost in the way I did because I had Jeffrey Epstein and his associates in mind. Numerous other men - mostly wealthy and powerful - were involved in his predation and not one of them has been suitably punished. ...

 When I’m on vacation, one stop I must make is to a church, and NYC was no different. I told my best friend, if I did anything, I knew where I had to go. St.Patrick’s Cathedral didn’t disappoint. For all its outward beauty, it’s what I found inside that captured my attention. I got peace in the middle of chaos. Quiet surrounded by noise. My soul desired it. Craved it, as if I were a kid begging for candy. For all my travels, the churches and cathedrals hold my heart. Assisi, Montreal, and New York City are in good company. Spiritual quiet and holy silence. My body from head to toe demands it. And it got it.  The church provides me physical rest and spiritual refreshment. As I look up in awe once again, I’m reminded how He is the only balm to my weariness. Jesus, you give me what I can’t give myself. And that is a blessing and a miracle. I wonder how He continues to sustain me even when I doubt His ability to do it.  I’m grateful that You give me, and continue to do so the...

Visitors who only read blogs will not have seen the following background alert that has recently been appearing on the dashboards of blog creators:- Updates to the Blogger Content Policy We are making some changes to our policies, effective December 16, 2026. To see how these changes may affect you, please find more information in the  Blogger Content Policy . I thought that it was about time that I investigated what this is all about. What changes are coming and how will they impact on everyday blogging? As far as I can make it out, it's all about tightening the system up and ensuring that Blogger is not used maliciously or for unsavoury purposes. It appears that Blogger has seventeen key guidelines that bloggers are meant to follow. Now it seems that these principles will be given more weight and there will be better enforcement. I copied and pasted the guidelines for your interest:- Absolute zero-tolerance policy; results in immediate removal, account termination, and reportin...

On Friday, I walked into the city centre to be at the lunchtime screening of "Wild Horse Nine" in The Showroom - my favourite  local cinema. Starring John Malcovitch and Sam Rockwell and directed by Martin McDonagh,  it is a dark comedy with a political edge set in Chile in 1973.  Many people do not realise that the most westerly part of Chile is Easter Island - 2330 miles across the eastern Pacific Ocean. Malcovitch plays the part of Chris and Rockwell plays the part of Lee. They are CIA agents involved in the pending overthrow of Salvador Allende's democratically elected left wing government. They have been planted in Chile for many months. For some reason - it is never explained why - their boss sends them to Easter Island . It was this factor that drew me to the film because I spent a happy week on Easter Island seventeen years ago - an experience that meant the world to me. Surely the film's use of Easter Island as a backdrop would bring back some special memorie...

 Happies Christmas card season Delicious sweet treat Bing Crosby My Christmas tree You from R's rue https://ift.tt/sRFcXbZ

Every leaf that falls in autumn is a little different from its neighbour. They each have their own story to tell - like the lines revealed on an open palm. Over the last week, the tree friendly southern suburbs of Sheffield have been carpeted with leaves and sometimes you walk ankle deep along the pavements, listening to the leaves' crinkly soundtrack. The air has been still but yet there are nooks and crannies, corners and gateways where the autumn dead have drifted. Yesterday, I raked and swept up a great pile of leaves in our garden then I decanted them into an old dustbin where they can gradually rot down for a year or so ready to enrich the soil. A virtuous circle perhaps. "Leaves" is a word used more than its synonym - "departs" and on Thursday our decorators left after a two week stint of meticulous work - preparing, sanding, undercoating, coating and recoating. They have done a great job of our hallway, staircase and landing. Although five different youn...