Wednesday, October 27, 2010

For those who wanted it.

Several people wrote me, saying that I had to talk about what people felt in my stories that I have recently written. Maybe it is just that story writing is not the same as poem writing for me. There is a disconnect when I think of the story in my head, and when I write it down for someone to view it, the feelings that I had in my mind at the time have been lost to the ether.

I could write this.

The feelings of the flower's soft light hitting my eyes as I woke up were startling. I had a rush of emotion that I could not tell if it was pride at having fallen right here next to this slice of heaven, or fear that I had fallen in the first place. Why in the world was I lying here on the ground with my face inches from a flower in the first place. Then it hit me.

............

You see I left you hanging, though I gave you a lot of emotional terms for you to use as you read the story. But it is first person, and I deal that way best in my writing, so I have a hard time at times getting into the head of someone else, even if they are in the same story as "My guy" is. Call it my own laziness if you will, or my own lack of willingness to stretch my stories beyond the juvenile, plain Jane bland high school fiction, As someone once told me in a comment line. But so that readers don't complain that I made them work at it themselves, I'll tell you a bit more about the fall guy above.

........

This was a dream. I woke up with a bit of a rush after that thought and felt my aching big toe and the knee where the floor had so rudely impacted me last night. There I was up sitting in the only big comfy chair in the room and I was finally getting sleepy. Time to go to bed, I could not remember the last place in my latest story I had left off at, so I lumber up and remember to avoid the foot stool. Only to hit the printer cabinets wheel with my left big toe and down I go in the dark. I tried hard to not fall one way, but did hit pretty hard on my left knee and hand, bumping the stereo cabinet. Lucky for me I am only 9,000 pounds and it is heavier than I am. (Okay I am only about 300, but at times of falling you feel heavier when you think about your hurting knee). The large grandfather mantle clock which is over 120 years old, is rattling and the springs and chimes are ringing in it. Something else up there has fallen over and I am fearful of things falling on my head to add insult to injury. Here I am waiting for someone to have heard me and then I am hoping they don't because I did not want to wake anyone up.

My dad shows up, asking if I am alright. I tell him I don't think so, I can't tell if this is blood on my finger or not, that it wasn't did not hurt my feelings much. Then getting up was an issue. I am not easy to get up from the ground, my legs and knees and back were having issues with it. But I have had knee trouble for almost all my life, to much something or other as a kid I wager. I got up on my own, but now I was not in the least bit sleepy. But I went to bed anyway. Hours later I get this odd dream. Then hours later after that I write the above story. Which on the one hand looks just like my other fictional stories, but was in truth fact.

............

There you go folks, feelings and fact all rolled up into a bit of fictional power playing, or rather non-fictional powered falling.

Several people did get a new fiction story in their emails, I'll post it later.

Hugs,
peace of the Lord
Charles.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Thought Puzzle

In several stories over the years I have had people who were or became very rich, both money and otherwise, land, space ships, planets etc.

In today's world, the one we are living in right now. What would happen if someone were to come along and be able to buy up and control the big corporations?

I am talking someone who behind the scenes does so, buying stocks, bonds and land, in big enough amounts that soon his actions get noticed. How much would he have to buy up before people in the wall streets and power halls of the world take notice.

In several conversations I have had in the past we talked about this, but the issues of today has been making me think on my idea of a king of the world kind of figure, who rules with kindness rather than greed. Taking over corporations would be a first start, and what would be the issues to transpire of someone doing that.

It ties into the fact that when Jesus was on earth, he said he was not going to be the earthly king that the Jews wanted him to be, freeing them from roman rule and such. But what if a Christ like person were to show up and try to rule that way, what sort of issues would he have to struggle with himself and with others, especially those people who think they run things on earth today, or at least have the power and wealth to run things in a greedy and selfish manner.

Just thought I'd put that out there for people to think about and, you can leave comments, or email me at ceojr1963 at yahoo. com

Thanks,
Hugs and the Peace of the Lord to you.
Charles.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

The business card of tomorrow.

I was standing outside one of my investments, when an old friend showed up. I was surprised that he was working on a Sunday. But there he was, walking down the sidewalk plain as day.

"Tommy", I said.

He looked up and smiled.

"What you doing here man? I thought they banned you from all of downtown?"

"Yeah well it seems that I can go some places just not others. The police that know me, have not said a word about me being here, just not where you work, Or in the place next door to here. So I am just looking in on one of my investments, while also shooting some pool and getting a beer to drink." I indicated the business I was standing in front of, and the one two doors down where I was still trying to get together with the owners to buy it up and fix that little problem.

"So I heard that you have seen, or at least done business with Franklene and her coffee house."

"Yeah, I had to get coffee for my lawyer's and the accountant's offices they had ran out. I buy all their coffee supplies, seems only fair that I do something more for them than keep them in business." I laugh.

"Man, I got's to run, nice seeing you." He said as he was moving away from me.

"Hold up Tommy, I got a few things for you." Out of my pocket I took a folded hunk of money, on the outside was One's and on the inside were the Hundreds. I peeled off 12 of the C notes. Handed him 10 first.
"I was meaning to get with you the next time I had money, but then it'd have been about 50, since then I have gotten a bigger chunk of change, so here is the tip now, that I am richer. "

Then I handed him the last 2 hundreds. "These are for Franklene when you see her , tell her they are a tip I forgot to give her on my coffee order, she'll moan and complain, I goad her with giving her tips like this, she never did like it much."

Then I reach into my pocket again and pull out a new Business card, with my company logo on the front. In a nice background of blues and greens and a wash of seascapes around the edges, and nothing on back. I hold it up to him so he can read the front then, still with my fingers on the edges I turn it over to show him the blank backside.

"Here Joey, put your thumb down hard." He does so, with an odd look on his face.
"Recognize new owner." I say with a smile.
"Take your thumb off the card and then replace it again." And he does this with more of an odd look on his face.
"Confirm new owner." I say, and 3 seconds later the back of the card blinks sea green and then blue.
"There you go, the card is yours. Now take your thumb away. Anytime you want to see what is on the back you tap it twice with any finger and the first page will show up."

I have him do just that. After he taps the back of the card the first page with all my contact information appears. I tell him to swipe his finger and he'll get the second page.

"The card has about 100 pages of info and neat stuff about the company on it, but the second page tells you how to use the features of the card, if you want to close the card either just put it down and it will close on it's own in 5 seconds, or you can tap it 5 times. Neat huh?"

His eyes light up as he reads and starts playing with the features, Then he gasps when he hears music and talking, from the movie feature he just opened up.

"What in the world, is this thing, looks like one of the newest phones, but it is a business card and it is so light and geesh, how the hell did you do this?"

"State secret, sorry I can't tell you how I did it, But here let me show you another feature."

I take the card by the edges and then I try and touch the back of the card and the screen goes white again, nothing there, just the name and my logo on the front. I hold the card and get out my zippo and light it up. I try for a while to burn the card, after a bit longer than needed to have burned a paper card, or at least heated up a metal card, I stop. I touch the card in the burn zone.

"It is not even hot or has soot on it. Neat huh? I have lots of these I give out to people when I want to impress them. It always makes them listen to me a bit harder than they might have been at first. I am further along the business road than most people."

"How did you do this." He asks again.

"It's a kind of magic." I smile and just shake my head. "I told you all, I was richer than you thought I was, now I got the money to make my ideas happen. Wait till you read about the newest generation of the next big thing, you'll see my company logo on it. Then remember, it's me behind it, and in time the freedoms I have talked about will be real."

I give him a hug and then turn and walk away, back inside the pool hall, leaving him standing there.

"Call me." I say.

...............................

The business card idea came to me in another storyline, but I wrote this bit, just a while ago, while thinking about an old friend and wanting to tell him about my BioWebScape Design project.

The card is closer than it was years ago, what with new materials and technologies that have cropped up recently, so look for one of these to show up soon, in the hands of someone you know, just around the corner, or on the flip side of the penny you pick up.

Hugs and the Lord's Peace to you all.
Charles.

Friday, October 08, 2010

The billionaire who came to dinner

The diner was not a small place about 50 tables and they were placed in a pattern that made no sense when you looked at it from eye level. But when you got up on the second floor and looked down you saw a flower with a flower inside it and other neat patterns you just wanted to look at it all day. The second floor was treated about the same way but instead of just tables you had a very long buffet table with lots of room on both sides to walk and what looked like a feast sized gathering of extras along the walls where other dishes could be set out.

Joe came into the place at about 3 am, surprised that a restaurant would be open at this time of night and he was surprised to actually see people sitting at some of the tables. What struck him the most was that he knew some of these people. They were homeless just like he was, and they were eating as if they had money and they didn't he knew them well enough to know if they had had money they'd be out drinking it.

He just stood there for a time and was about to turn to leave, when a hostess came up to him with a friendly smile on her face and said.

" Where would you like to be seated, we have a lot of room tonight as you can see."

His mind was a bit flustered how could she even think he'd be able to pay the bill for a spread like this.

" Um, I can't afford food, I was just wondering if you had a bathroom I could use."

"No worries, the food is free, order whatever you like, and the bathroom is in the back right down the right hand wall." She said as she pointed that way.

"Free! You can't be serious?"

"Oh Yes! I am, the owner is a billionaire that loves people and food, and thought what a nice way to help others enjoy food but to feed them the feasts that only a billion dollars could buy. So yes, find a seat after you get out of the bathroom and see what you might want us to make for you this evening." She smiled and gave him a hug to push her point home and turned and left him standing there agape.

........................

I wrote the scenes of this story about 2 years ago, I just kept them in my composers place, my mind's eye and worked on bits of the story whenever I was reminded of this kind of thing. As I was telling my brother the other day, I have composed a lot of stories, months and months worth of books, but I have not gotten the time or energy to put them in print, but having seen something that reminded me of this I post this now. The scene above is just a taste of the storyline, but you get the picture for now.

Many of my stories are written from the point of view of a very ultra rich individual who is walking about the world helping people feel the Love of Christ in odd ways, and at times also stirring up a bit of angst amoung those that think they are rich, as the character is so rich, his wealth has not been counted recently. As a child I thought what it would be like to be a Trillionaire and then started this line of thinking in several stories of science fiction and general fiction like this one.

Money is not everything, this person I have patterned myself around, in that I could get by without money at all, living off the land in such a way as to be in a house and look like I had money, but everything was given to me in trade and or just plain given to me for services in return, no money needed.

Once I gave every bit of money I had away every day for over a year, I had income on a daily basis, but I'd end up buying a few things and giving the rest away, I still can't be trusted as my dad says to not give my money away to every tom, dick and sally, I meet in the world. People I know often ask me why I have this give it all away attitude. I answer it is not mine, God gave it to me to give away to those that I find that need it, I have usually tried to not give it away to people who would waste it on things that were bad for them, but I can't tell if they might not spend it on those bad things or not, as I have given it to people who were on the outside standup people, but I knew they had desires that money could buy and this was a free buck that could be used for it. I left that up to them, I just gave it away anyway. It used to drive one lady crazy that I gave her tips when she was the only one working in her shop, as she was the owner and did not need the money, but I'd say, I can't leave here with money in my pocket, sorry, you'll just have to take it.

I am richer than I look. I have the whole world out my front door, feeling that it's mine for the asking if I were to really think about it, I could have all of it that someone else did not own. Like the clouds and the sky and the breeze and bugs and birds and the butterflies, all mine.

May you have the peace of Christ.
Charles.

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

BioWebScape update and things

Dear friends,


The weather is dry dry around here, going on three weeks without rain, maybe even four really. I have more than 100 gallons left of stored water, I know it is more but to guess how much would be only a guess. I am pulling from four different barrels that have water in them. Three 55 gallons, and a 30 ish gallon one. I still have the AC drip collector, but have not been running the AC unless it gets over 80 in the house and with nights getting down to the 40's that hasn't happened in a few days.

I was transplanting a dying Purslane plant I had in a leftover styrofoam container from the kitchen, when I noticed all the babies in the soil, the plant seeded and they are all over the place, I guess they sprouted when I last watered it. Today I saw it dry still and decided to just move it to a raised bed, now I am glad I did.

The onion sets that we planted in the spring that did not do so well and died off, seem to have weathered over the summer and some are now sprouting again. Also the onion likes cooler weather than we had this summer, so there is that, I guess I really need to do more reading up on the times things like to live. Once I knew, but time has gone under that bridge and learning again is what this is all about.

The basil self seeded, and I am either going to transplant them all to other areas, or just let them winter over in place and mulch them with leaves and then move them in the spring, or leave them where they are and plant around them. They are in the raised beds out back and not in the general population of the yard.

I have peas and greens growing in containers. The two 20 gallon tubs that I used for my potato experiment have Sugar Snap peas in them and some greens. I also have two clothes hampers that someone threw out because they were cracked in the bottoms, with bags in them and soil and one with mixed greens and the other with mixed greens and peas. I have the Old Grey Tote from the old M.M. Cohn stores that had holes drilled in it planted with some swiss chard. Almost all the greens are at that tiny nibble leaf size, just enough to taste and want more, and have to wait stage. The soil mix that I used seems to hold water well if I miss watering them for a day or so. The weather is cool at night so the evaporation is not so bad, but the clear dry days still pull the water vapor out.

The roma tomato is setting fruit again, which is cool, hopefully the freezes stay away for a while longer, it'd be cool to have some more tomatoes this late in the season. All the peppers have been stressed with the dryness but still have fruit and I am letting it getting bigger and maybe get ripe or just further along than I had earlier in the season.

I still have to find out about the acorns from across the street and the ones from one of our trees to see if they are lower in tannins enough to eat( still have to soak them and it'd be good in running water, which I don't have). The squrriels have so many things to eat around here they don't know what to do with themselves. Two nieghbors kill them, so the population has taken a dive in recent months, not something I can do about that one. I am not the killing of squrriels kind of person. Even though I eat meat, or ant eggs, they just aren't on my list. I don't see myself getting to the point where I have to eat them to survive, if they are around, then other edibles will be too.

I pray the water holds out till the rain comes back, but if not oh well, we will get there when we get there.

Hugs and the peace of the Lord be with you all.
Charles.