Recently I visited the White Rose Shopping Centre, in South Leeds. During this tarry, procuring a new printer for the purpose of printing copies of my daily narratives. At the cost of £19.99, a gracious offer from monsieur WH Smith and folk at his splendid stationery emporium. Quite perversely, the purchase price less than that... Continue Reading →
Diamond in the Rough
Occasionally, while treading this creative path, I venture into a world of philosophy. A time when I try to make sense of life on this dysfunctional planet; hopefully leaving it with some insightful observation or advocacy. Yesterday, one such pearl of wisdom occurred to me; this relating to the upside of enduring stressful life episodes.... Continue Reading →
Standing on Ceremony
This weeks topic prompt for a writing group I attend on a bi-weekly basis was 'ceremony'. A suggestion leading me to write/read out the following tongue-in-cheek narrative:- Ceremony – by Gary Strachan Today, with our thoughts on ceremonies, I’ve decided to revisit the day 35 years ago when I walked down the aisle of a County... Continue Reading →
The Dating Game
In a move to improve my exercise regime, which brings with it many benefits, GJ Strachan is contemplating purchasing a heavy duty punchbag. Preferably one around six foot in height with ground-based footings and of robust constitution. Blimey, while articulating the previous sentence, it felt like yours truly was penning a half-assed lonely-hearts ad..... That being... Continue Reading →
Fit For a King
You can say what you want about us Brits, but no one can take away our ingrained capacity to nail pomp, circumstance and royal celebration. A point gloriously highlighted over a weekend witnessing two days of festivities to mark King Charles III's coronation. As expected the ceremony which saw our new monarch crowned was undertaken... Continue Reading →
Watch Out For Those Thorns!!
Working with this week's topic prompt of ‘The Walk’, my mind wandered to a recent discussion at a writing workshop I attend on a bi-weekly basis. This whimsical exchange relating to the merits, or otherwise, of an upcoming naked stroll scheduled to take place at a nearby North Yorkshire town. Let me start by admitting my understanding of this... Continue Reading →
The Venerable Cheese
Last week saw a two night tarry to a campsite near Berwick-upon-Tweed with my kid brother, Ian. Our camper van resting place affording its lucky visitors enchanting views of North Sea landscapes Lindisfarne, and further afield Bamburgh Castle. Lindisfarne (aka as Holy Island) the tidal isle, with its links to 6th century monks Saint Cuthbert... Continue Reading →
An Inaugural Meeting
Today's literary offering is a piece penned for a writing group meeting this week. The topic for this maximum 1,000 word narrative was to journal a first meeting between a young man/new girlfriend and his parents... Concentrating in part on the thoughts of the mother, along with the son's new partners observations of events as... Continue Reading →
Cultural Debate
I have had a buddy from Gateshead stopping at my Wakefield apartment for the past two days. A cohort of mine since working together at the National Coal Board head office in the early 1980's, he (also named Gary) taught me a huge amount about inappropriate humour; including the limerick starting 'The was a young... Continue Reading →