Sunday, September 26, 2010

Aah, it is great to be home after a break away in Toulon in France. This country is wonderful and very civilised. People are friendly and the food is amazing. Cathy and I loved our stay here and are sorry to be heading back to London. Toulon has to be seen to be believed, and has everything for all couples or families to enjoy there. Check out this video for more info on the beautiful Area of Toulon and Marseille.



The band ABBA are taking action against the Danish far Right party for using one of their famous songs "Mama Mia" and changing it for political purposes  - over to "Mama Pia", and the musicians Benny Anderson and Bjorn Ulvaeus are not impressed. The Swedish band members are not impressed with the Danish for ripping off their music. The Danish People's Party has its roots in the Neo Nazi party in that country. Wow, what am I to think here!

And in the UK, the Labour Party - not back in opposition after leading the UK for the last 11 years - has got itself a new party leader. Ed Milliband has succeeded Gordon Brown,  who was previously very unpopular with the party, and it will be interesting to see how the rank outsider Ed will perform. His older Brother David Milliband who was a Foreign Secretary under Brown used to joke that young Ed used to have to introduce himself as "The Other Milliband". Now Dave will have to use that title himself as Ed takes all the limelight. Power can be a real bitch, can't it? Heh!!! And it's Sunday! Meanwhile I have a press chock full of amazing french food here and a supply of French Coffee to last me into 2011 at least! Bon jour! :D

(The Markets in Toulon provide great shopping here, and food are fresh and always good!)

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Books to treasure - try the flavours on my list

Oprah Winfrey has one of the most famous Book Clubs in the World, not just the USA. And some of the books she recommends are truly worth reading. I have been browsing and checking out some titles, and came across this pure Gem. It's "Freedom" by Jonathan Franzen, and available on Amazon.
    These books are hugely readable. Franzen is very good at involving his readers in his writing. It's not hard to see how Freedom became a Bestseller on the Oprah Book Club listing. I also recommend the novel "The Corrections" as this is almost as good as the Freedom novel. Enjoy your reading here! Cheers!

The Poet who writes amazing words

My partner is a poet who writes on Hub Pages under the name of Astra Nomik. Astra writes romantic poetry, and often it is about me. For the first time on my blog, I want to champion her poetry here. I have links to her hub pages below on the sidebar, but here is a link to her newest poem, called "Naked and Born".

She has a way of dealing with emotions and her feelings in words that is quite mesmerising...


"...Naked and born – is how I feel now –
Just out of a womb, in the wide open warm
Of the Heat of Your Love – of a Sun that is bright –
In the glad of your smile – in the small fish pond,
Where the water it tingles – and bubbles up nice –
As the ambient yellow electric of life –
It burns me all over and cooks through my soul."

There's more to read, so click the link for the whole poem, if you wish. Enjoy the reading here, and check out some of the titles below, you might like them too. Cheers.



   

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Imelda May - this is your Life

Imelda May is to Rockabilly what Elvis is to Rock n Roll. They say the "King" is dead. I think Elvis never left the building - he snuck into the ladies room and put on a skirt and came out as Imelda May. So okay, I am kidding. Or am I? Imelda May is one name that in the crowded world of music - just stands out. She started life as a music buff in love with the old classic songs her parents loved, and she later performed in the Liberties in Dublin - Ireland, where she grew up as a young woman with a passion for old fashioned music that was thought to be long gone out of fashion. The Rockabilly sound was an American invention, and had its day, and some very famous names attached to it. Gene Vincent and Bill Haley to name but some. Now Imelda May has arrived and is giving a somewhat jaded music scene a touch of the new, in the old, but the new - if you know what I mean. But you need to know the full story, so click the link and read away, and enjoy her interview film and music double video ala Jools Holland's show...

 

Making Money from Google Adsense & Amazon Associates

This is part of an article I just wrote about how to make money from Google Adsense and Amazon Ads. Let’s assume that you are the following. You have a Hub Pages account, or an equivalent article on some website you just published and you will write more. Hub Pages or your website builder lets you put ads from Google Adsense, (or in Hub Pages case - Amazon Ads, EBay ads, and Kontera Ads on all your Hub Pages, provided the material you write suits the ads terms. I will deal with Google and Amazon here for now.)


Let’s also assume you are interested in earning income from your Hub Pages or your efforts in creating what it is you put on the Web, in whatever form it takes. Hubs allow you to make money income from the advertising lpaced in the articles you write. When you've made your first $100 like me - this gets very tempting to want to achieve more again! It’s nice to get something back from it all. It helps to justify the efforts. You are thinking of setting up or have already set up a Blog account on Blogger. Reason – you can display Google Adsense Ads and Amazon ads for any Amazon products there too...read the Hub Page article for more...follow the link!
 

Thursday, September 16, 2010

I am part of the way through writing a book based on my "Encounters" series of Articles I wrote on Hub Pages. It is partly auto-biographical. It is over 60% complete already. I spend  up to an hour and a half a day to get it all written down and then I'm doing an edit / re-write after that. Then some promo work and off to LuLu.com to get it published! (Link goes to my hub on self-publishing on Lulu.) Big day for moi and my belle Cathy. She guest stars in this paperback adventure naturally! How could she not! Many people have encouraged and made suggestions - most of them from Hub Pages where I write my Hubs. Aaah, thanks Guys & Gals!

I want to thank the many Hubbers and friends who have supported me in this adventure and I appreciate the fans, followers, Facebookers, Myspacers, Bloggers and everyone who has help inspire this. And especially Cathy and Blaise, and Allie and Amber...and you too Art! Again, many thanks, everyone!! :D

Meanwhile, read some of these totally awesome books! You have to start somewhere.