Blither, hither, thither and yon…

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Yes, how remiss of me for not putting a scanned pic of the luscious fireman I mentioned on yesterday’s blog. To make up for it I have put one of him and another I like out of the calendar. Actually they’re all good pictures and I only bought the calendar for philanthropic reasons. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I believe if you click on the picture you can see these men much clearer. Was I right about Ian, the fire-fighter, or what?

Speaking of fire…do you burn bridges? Nah, you’re probably all too rational and reasonable to do this. But a friend and I were talking about bridge burning and the reason behind it. It was right after talking about stiletto heels and how they are really for the benefit of men and not for women…but that’s another discussion for another time…anyway, back to bridges - I am very good at burning them…I cross ‘em and napalm ‘em and move on. I tend to think the main reason behind burning bridges is self preservation

- that some people need to leave your life to allow you to breathe freely. Did you ever see the movie The Bridges of Madison County? I watched it years ago and thought it was dumb when she would not get out of the car and leave the crap life she had to go off with the man she loved. Of course now, older, wiser, crankier, I can see why she didn’t. Every so often do you wonder what if I had of done this instead of that? If I had of stayed instead of left…said yes instead of no…but then I guess you do what you do because instinct and self preservation tells to you to scarper, to be free, to be careful, to burn that bridge. My friend thinks it’s all to do with fear – he’s probably right. Sometimes fear and self preservation are the same thing. What do you think?

Whoa…bit frigging meaningful huh? On to other more pleasant things. I chatted to a couple of cyber friends on the phone today – Barbara Huffert and Anny Cook – fascinating women. I am eventually getting around to ringing everyone I like and email on a daily basis but it takes time and we all lack that don’t we? Remember when you were a kid and it took forever to get to school holidays or Christmas? Anyway, I digress as usual – it was nice talking to these two writers as opposed to emailing because you learn things about them you never could in email. Added to that we all sound different on the phone. Have you found sometimes when you speak to someone in flesh, instead of email, that you really don’t have anything in common at all and it’s really hard to string a conversation along? I can talk under water with a mouthful of marbles but what if the person cannot do the same? I can only babble on for so long before it becomes painful. Do you know people who are fascinating on email but tedious in person? We’re all tedious to someone. However - the two writers I spoke to today do not have that problem – we spoke for hours. I believe we could have quite a gabfest if we ever meet in person…one day.

That’s if for me today…I did the house frau thing and cleaned. How boring is cleaning? But in saying that I don’t think I could ever have someone clean my house. Firstly, because I am quite capable of doing it and it costs money. Secondly, I don’t like people poking around in my stuff. I am a very private person. Oh sure, I rabbit on about this and that on the blog but that’s generalities not specifics. No one ever tells everyone everything do they? We have to retain some mystery don’t we? I also happen to know, having worked as a hotel cleaner, in one of my many jobs overseas, cleaners are nosy…at least I was. Or maybe it’s a case people shouldn’t leave such interesting things out in plain view. I can tell you some wild people hang out in hotel rooms with some verrrry interesting stuff.

Speaking of interesting…Kama Sutra Lovers – a ménage romance – is released from Ellora’s Cave on July 18th….here’s a sneak peak direct from author Anny Cook.

“Think about it Arik. If your uncle takes over the company, there are real issues for the government. He’s made no secret about his feelings about our government contracts or about the conservation of resources. If he had his way, Elyria would be headed well down the same path of destruction as Earth.”
Arik nodded with resignation. “The cops. Thank you for thinking of it.”
“Don’t worry about that. What else is on your list?” Hart asked intently, as Matilda appeared with a large cart of refreshments.
“What list?” she inquired curiously.
“Giosetta just pointed out that our tri-marriage has placed us in greater jeopardy than we realized. We’re trying to compile a list of changes we need to make to ensure our security.”
“Change the locks.”
“I have that covered. The locksmith should be here in the next hour.” Hart pushed his communicator across the table. “There’s his info.”
She took the communicator to the house com, plugged it in and transferred the information. After unplugging it, she returned the com to Hart and started serving a hearty afternoon tea complete with chocolate scones and strawberries. “Have you considered hiring a professional driver and security team?”
Hart nodded. “Working on it. An official from EGS will be here at second hour sub-prime.”
“The locksmith! Lester has connections to at least two of the locksmithing companies,” Giosetta exclaimed. “I completely forgot about that.”
“Les has his fingers in a lot of pies,” Arik observed dryly. “We’re going to have to be very careful about who we deal with.”
“The locksmith is safe.” Hart smiled slyly. “He’s a distant cousin of mine. On Earth he was burglar.” His dark eyes were twinkling. “He retired when his number was picked in the lottery. Now he’s a full-time head chef at Mackanally’s Chinese Buffet.”
“Henry?” Arik stared at Hart, not quite sure whether to believe him or not. “Henry Anderson was a burglar?” He tried to envision the six-foot-three broad shouldered Henry sneaking into houses.
“One of the best.” Hart chuckled. “Henry was never caught. The cop who spent so much time trying to catch him was picked in the lottery, too. They play cards every Friday night.”
Giosetta giggled. “I bet that makes for some interesting conversations.”
“Yeah.” Hart sighed. “Back to work. What else do we need to add to the list?”
“Do you know a security company that’s not affiliated with Lester?” Arik tapped keys on his tablet filling in a lengthening list as he thought of new items to add.“Lee Chong’s group. Security Solutions. He despises your uncle. I’ll call him.” Hart took his communicator over to the window to make his call while Giosetta and Arik worked on the list. While he waited for the connection to Lee, Hart watched a man sidle through the bushes that lined the wall. A sturdy pack on his back and the strange item he dragged behind him captured Hart’s curiosity. When Lee came online, Hart described the man and his behavior. Seconds later, he was dragging Giosetta and Arik through the kitchen where he collected Matilda, and then urged them down to the underground tunnel system.

“Hurry. Move!”
“Hart, what the hell is wrong?” Arik’s irritable questions were cut off by the thunderous boom that shook the house. “What the fuck was that?”
“Rocket launcher,” Hart replied tersely. “Guy in the garden.”
A second explosion, followed by the odor of smoke had Arik cursing under his breath as he herded Matilda and Giosetta toward the far corner. “Come on Hart! Into the tunnel!”
Hart was yelling into his communicator while he rushed behind them, dodging falling debris. “Get the fire department!”
They tumbled into the tunnel and Hart slammed the heavy fire door behind them. “Son of a bitch! Good thing most of my clothes and belongings are still down at the carriage house. He didn’t get my shoes.”
“What makes you think the carriage house is still standing?” Giosetta asked wryly.
“Oh, no. If he burned up my shoes, then it’s war!”

www.amarindajones.com
Go ahead: Live with abandon. Be outrageous at any age. What are you saving your best self for?