Orinoco

You have probably heard of the Amazon sales giant. You can get just about anything from Amazon but it all began with books.

As I am eager to be ultra-rich just like Jeff Bezos, I have decided to launch my own sales giant which I have decided to name after another South American river - The Orinoco. This will be our logo and in the next year or two it is bound to become as familiar as the "a" of Amazon:-

Following Mr Bezos's example, we are starting off with books - specifically eight books by bloggers that are exclusive to "Orinoco". Each title may be purchased directly from Yorkshire Pudding for the unbelievably low price of $20 US + postage and packing...

A charming and amusing  tale of life in a North Wales 

village - a modern day "Under Milkwood".

"Roger, come here you little bugger!"

A tenderly written novel about love and life in a sultry Florida community.

"What ya doing honey?"

"Just planting beans."

"Splendid read!" - Tallahassee Democrat

The true story of how a king penguin from Washington Zoo  travelled the world. From the author of  the bestselling"The American Bar Association in Disneyworld".

A romantic romp through the hills of south west Ireland.

"She wanted him like nothing she had ever wanted before."

Edwards's linguistic skills are legendary and quite endearing.

"I didn't understand a frigging word" - Liverpool Echo

Deception and intrigue from The Isle of Man's top crime writer.

"Lord Peregrine grabbed the hold-all and sprinted to the helicopter"

It's surprising what you can see from the balcony of a high rise 

apartment in a little known Australian city.

"The cover design is as remarkable as the book itself!" - The Age

The true story of a Yorkshire lad raised in the wetlands near Goole 

who battled against the odds to become the assistant 

manager of a supermarket in Huddersfield.

"I liked potted meat in my sandwiches in them days".

"Recommended if you have trouble sleeping" - The Huddersfield Daily Examiner

from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/4XlRnL2

Agua

Taking a stroll

Down the mountain pass

Seeking the birds flying

High above

In majestic formation

In the heights

Worry melts

And peace

Is as readily available

As the living water

He has 

For his beloveds

from R's rue https://ift.tt/dM0YpHB

Monday

Las Vegas last night

I watched the 58th Superbowl last night - between San Francisco 49ers and the eventual winners - Kansas City Chiefs. This meant I was very late to bed and it's undoubtedly the reason why I missed my early appointment for an anti-shingles injection. Drat! But never mind, I phoned the health centre to apologise and they re-booked me at eleven forty.

Afterwards, I went round the corner to visit Frances and Baby Margot. Shirley was there too and helping to sort through a mountain of baby clothes which Frances plans to sell on. She was taking pictures of the various items to display online. 

I cuddled Little Miss Peaceful for a while and sung her "Scarborough Fair" as well as the evolving "Margot Song". She rewarded me with some heavenly smiles as she surveyed my face with her sparkling Pacific blue eyes.

Yesterday I made the Sunday dinner again - roasted loin pork with all the trimmings. This time I tried something different with the cauliflower cheese. Taking florets from a large cauliflower I then tossed them in olive oil, seasoning and grated parmesan before roasting for twenty minutes. They browned a little.

My cheese sauce included a little English mustard powder, grated nutmeg, half a spoonful of "Marmite" and a big handful of grated "extra strong"  Cheddar cheese. When the sauce was done, I poured it over the roasted florets and returned my roasting dish to the oven for twenty five minutes. We were all pleased with end result and I will certainly be following that method again.

Today, I note with bitter dismay how Netanyahou has given the go-ahead for further wanton destruction in Gaza. This time, the Israeli army is focusing on the beleaguered town of Rafah   to the south of "the strip".  It's a town that is filled to the brim with internally displaced and desperate refugees.  

Netanyahou disguises his brutal punishment of Gazans by claiming they have to keep rooting out and killing members  and supporters of Hamas. Simply speaking, as The Gaza Strip is such a small piece of land, it is unavoidable that Hamas members and supporters will be present in every surviving neighbourhood but why should that involve such a cruel orgy of collateral damage? 27,000 inhabitants of Gaza have now been killed  with a large proportion of them being children and women. 

It beggars belief. It really does. The Palestinians of Gaza are sealed in a trap from which there is no escape. Where are they supposed to run to now? Netanyahou does not appear to give a damn. And of course Hamas can never be destroyed because it is an idea more than it is a thing.

Back in my little world in Sheffield, far away from Kansas City and The Gaza Strip, the sun is shining and I am just popping into the kitchen to make a small excuse for a lunch - a wedge of Shirley's surviving homemade Christmas cake with a chunk of Cheddar cheese and a mug of coffee.

Rafah today

from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/HZfoAy0

Love

When the words

Don’t come

Let my heart

Be the compass

To the thoughts

I cannot speak

Lead me to the place

Where Your love

Is all I find

As I seek forgiveness

And acceptance

In the Hands

That formed

What I see

In the torrent of rain

Reawaken my soul

To the joy

That comes

When I’m 

Wholly reliant

On Your Power

To allow me

Peace

To see life

As it is

Even if

I struggle

To grapple

With its goodness

Search me

Find me willing

To love others

Even when

I question

The benefit

from R's rue https://ift.tt/jsHMRVh