tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16250703969234795582024-03-13T17:11:37.040+01:00Tom Gamble - authorWelcome! Author Tom Gamble speaks about his work and offers tips to those with a dream to getting published.
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-35114493823284436642016-08-23T14:39:00.000+02:002016-08-23T14:39:55.762+02:00<br />
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<b style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #cccccc; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">When a manuscript is completed, what happens next? Tom Gamble discusses the context, the challenges, and possible solutions</span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">The context</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I often get asked the question of
how long it takes to write something. Whether in a professional context: How
long does it take to write a case study, an article, an educational book, a
script? Or regarding my out-of-work writing passion: How long does it take, then,
to write a novel, a poem?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And
I always hesitate. Because people want a precise answer. Either they want to
know in order to measure and justify budgets for commissioning work, or they
have their own writing project in mind and are testing their motivation before committing
to the task. It’s not that they’re obsessed by time. It’s just that </span><i style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">we all are</i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">: driven by the hands on the clock
or, more often than not nowadays, our digital displays on our mobile phones. And
as such, time frames are nowadays more legitimate to demand than ever.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The
first real and right answer should be “Well, it takes as long as it takes!” But
not only is this reply unfashionable and perhaps dangerous (performance-oriented
as we tend to be – </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">“rather an
unprofessional answer, n’est-ce pas”</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">), it could also be taken as appearing
flippant, even snooty. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
second real and right answer is: anything from an afternoon to three years. If you
have the content more or less in note form, an article takes several hours to
puzzle together and polish the stylistic effects. A poem might take two or four
hours, but will then go through several versions over several weeks before you’re
happy with it (and coming back one or two years later, you’ll re-write it again,
no doubt!).</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo5oybLwy8YdaJcu_3hiZeWt73cWX8y0X87LUo5Lnt_wPWsCWhUIxv-xpM8A7REwjU7pGFYg0f1ZIk0vYyzPYxVIpV4Ek5WKSbk4JhwuAgarfZBWv4QVviBHMmYbMWysXH2cPzs5n5z2sL/s1600/Amazir+Tom+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo5oybLwy8YdaJcu_3hiZeWt73cWX8y0X87LUo5Lnt_wPWsCWhUIxv-xpM8A7REwjU7pGFYg0f1ZIk0vYyzPYxVIpV4Ek5WKSbk4JhwuAgarfZBWv4QVviBHMmYbMWysXH2cPzs5n5z2sL/s200/Amazir+Tom+Gamble.jpg" width="129" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">A
novel is different. Because it depends on how long you have to devote to it in
the first place. </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Amazir-New-re-edited-authors-preface-ebook/dp/B00JEFSNKG#nav-subnav" target="_blank">Amazir</a></i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> spanned three
years from mind-map to plot to writing that first chapter to completing the
whole manuscript. Why? Because I had a very demanding full-time job and a
family to cater for too. The second, this time commissioned, novel – </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Kingdom-Emptiness-Tom-Gamble-ebook/dp/B00IWYNMEW#nav-subnav" target="_blank">The Kingdom of Emptiness</a></i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> – took...three
months to write. Why? Because I’d left my job, become a freelancer, and decided
to take a three-month non-paid sabbatical to write it – ten to thirteen hours a
day, seven days a week, and the last several chapters in a non-stop
twenty-seven hour stint at the computer. Writing a novel in such a brief span
of time doesn’t necessarily mean it’s lower in quality: in fact, personally, </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The Kingdom</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> for me is miles better in
terms of style and flow. If you can take the risk, take the necessary time to
dedicate yourself wholly to the task. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">News – <i>Strange Roads</i></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_SblXDlQx9RaMT-isKdxlKNtxixOQ_OzKK-pGLHhLG705ieXnWPr5mBtdR1km6NxU-hpDn2bd8DaHAN4zsR4w5DKy14zfaStKzMDB5LAb5RFNHJPuSX_5OlnaZjTfsXlYQpq_BsRqWtyN/s1600/The+Kingdom+of+Emptiness+Tom+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_SblXDlQx9RaMT-isKdxlKNtxixOQ_OzKK-pGLHhLG705ieXnWPr5mBtdR1km6NxU-hpDn2bd8DaHAN4zsR4w5DKy14zfaStKzMDB5LAb5RFNHJPuSX_5OlnaZjTfsXlYQpq_BsRqWtyN/s200/The+Kingdom+of+Emptiness+Tom+Gamble.jpg" width="125" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And a new manuscript has just been completed – </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Strange Roads</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">, set in the post-war
France of 1946-47, and digging up the ghosts of the key characters and those he
meets around him. </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Strange Roads</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> was
first announced, I believe, in late 2013, an enthusiastic announcement that with
gusto, courage and commitment, it would be completed before you could say Jack
Robinson. Things turned out differently. Because the story took over, meandered
into things I didn’t want it to, began ordering me, the writer, what to do
instead of the inverse. This spring, having sent it to an agent for feedback, I
decided to re-vamp the whole thing and chop off the last third of the story
(the part that had grown of its own will). And now, it’s ready. Ready for what?</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The challenge</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The
answer is the next road which, in terms of time, may also take anything from one
month to three years. Yes, the slog to publication! After all, writing is like the
mistake we could make when making a decision. We make it – and think it’s
attained. But a decision, to paraphrase <a href="http://paulocoelhoblog.com/" target="_blank">Paulo Coelho</a>, is only just the
beginning of it all. Likewise when you finish a manuscript.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2dZcclhCPky85ZqI5_Ajw95m2AWpPEilSq9wqh4O6wQxgkR3yjUfCYjqMm0UOZYyPyvt4HEUNhHUGWZtgsJlQrcT72q3MuJrJiuaa0Fu5-_6cYBD7Uz8eT7tC0RMjh2eX0O1zFZJGLJXx/s1600/writers+%2526+artists+yearbook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2dZcclhCPky85ZqI5_Ajw95m2AWpPEilSq9wqh4O6wQxgkR3yjUfCYjqMm0UOZYyPyvt4HEUNhHUGWZtgsJlQrcT72q3MuJrJiuaa0Fu5-_6cYBD7Uz8eT7tC0RMjh2eX0O1zFZJGLJXx/s200/writers+%2526+artists+yearbook.jpg" width="140" /></a><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I
sometimes wonder how many brilliant stories have been written and that lay in
cupboards because the submission process was too tough, too loaded. Well, hey –
if you didn’t already know it, life is tough! Let’s look at some of the
obstacles to overcome and see if we can come up with any solutions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">First,
who’ll be interested? Well, maybe us passionate scribblers should have thought
of that at the beginning! But if not, the tendency is to buy a copy of this
year’s <a href="https://www.writersandartists.co.uk/" target="_blank">Artists & Writers’ Yearbook</a> and trawl through the publishing houses.
There are hundreds, nay thousands and the initial excitement that surely one
will be interested (as well as a slight worry over all the postage costs
involved), is soon snuffed out. The initial list of more than a hundred
dwindles like a cheap candle bought at the discount store – rapidly. And the
odour it leaves is nothing short of cheapy charred too. Why? Because the
majority of famous, international publishers – you know, the ones we actually buy
books from and thereby keep in business – do not accept unsolicited
manuscripts. No – there’s that one-liner that says: </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Unsollicited manuscripts not accepted</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">. Which means you have to go
through an agent. Which means that you frantically turn to the Agents section
in the Yearbook only to find out…that most agents do not accept unsolicited manuscripts
from unknown authors! Yes, you got it. It’s just like dealing with a tax
enquiry with the French administration: a merry-go-round of puzzling paradoxes
and catch-22s.</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
solutions</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1)
Aim for smaller, newly established publishing houses – they are looking for the
gem and will be ready to take a risk…at a smaller price (understandable). 2)
Some large, famous, international publishers have actually managed to go digital
and do accept initial inquiries and samples via… e-mail. 3) Agents: who dares
wins – phone, mail, send off regardless: if you get your pitch right, you might
raise an eyebrow of interest! 4) Self-publish and be damned – the idea is to
offer the world your story, right? Or please yourself or your family, or
impress that nice looking potential soulmate you’ve had your eye on for some
time.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZsFqk3VosVNL0cgQGv_PVEefhTpWLvZAeDIqhtrha33mRIWc5xHyWpRXB_nUpQSHHgfh3NoGL2FBfpAmPgXkQvDg9ZW13IxomOsYJITACjc_p6xcd1hzbACGqzKjD0wrslqJ7veqP-vS/s1600/220px-Eddie_Cochran_Three_Steps_To_Heaven.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZsFqk3VosVNL0cgQGv_PVEefhTpWLvZAeDIqhtrha33mRIWc5xHyWpRXB_nUpQSHHgfh3NoGL2FBfpAmPgXkQvDg9ZW13IxomOsYJITACjc_p6xcd1hzbACGqzKjD0wrslqJ7veqP-vS/s1600/220px-Eddie_Cochran_Three_Steps_To_Heaven.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eddie Cochran said there were 3</td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The usual 4-step process for submitting
your work</span></b></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1 1. </span><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Initial
enquiry including brief synopsis and a little about yourself (letter, mail,
phone call) including past work published, blog, website and how you see your potential
career evolving.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2. Over
that hurdle? Yes? Then comes the sending of the full synopsis and one to three
sample chapters.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3. Past
that one? Okay, so then comes the sending of the whole manuscript compliant
with the rules of the house you’re sending it to (i.e. TNR, double-spaced, one side
of page only, etc.). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4. The
wait. One week to four months in my experience. Though I now observe that the
rejection slip/message now sometimes stretches into six months (staff cuts and
increased workloads? Increased numbers of wannabe’s to process? Greenwashing (a
nice corporate message about caring for the ecosystem of hopefuls while
maintaining a slush pile of never-to-be-looked-at manuscripts in the basement)?<span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">What to do when faced with the obstacle
course</span><o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgML0ao59kXri57om8FCLgpcZbmUPaXATMdaq24-zoxLEVkih8EdFnnMCadioQIhggfA5GVCHNeyiVcfb4-Cp626CWDXyjFusrvXOnLmGu6ZIQDticoi5f9s7BPNUfd3L3k7-_vd1jPURP/s1600/Pete+Best+The+Beatles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgML0ao59kXri57om8FCLgpcZbmUPaXATMdaq24-zoxLEVkih8EdFnnMCadioQIhggfA5GVCHNeyiVcfb4-Cp626CWDXyjFusrvXOnLmGu6ZIQDticoi5f9s7BPNUfd3L3k7-_vd1jPURP/s320/Pete+Best+The+Beatles.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sometimes the Best aren't taken...</td></tr>
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">No
pain, no gain. Try, try and try again. The more pain, the more you love it –
just like the Marines (I have several battle scars as proof – and they can
always be used to impress people).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Network,
glitter and smile: talk to people. You’d be surprised how many people are, or
have friends, in publishing or related sectors. Go to see a bookseller – it has
been known for writers and publishers to actually walk into bookshops and buy
books! Go and chat to the local librarian (usually the sort who hides a hidden
love of books, I believe).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Knock
on doors. Yes, face fear and embarrassment and very probably ridicule. But sometimes,
at least in the land of Disney, it works.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Wait.
Step back. Take a break and then get back into the fray.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Get
rid of any expectations. A bit like when using a dating agency or entering a
negotiation: the best ones are always those where you have no expectations to
win the big one. Learn from the encounter and tell yourself that life is so
strange and wonderful.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Plan
over time: avoid making the submission process one that sends you spiralling
into losing belief. Two nonchalantly programmed but well-written mails a week
over two months.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Go
for serendipity and believe in your lucky star, circumstance and some
intangible thing that will get you there in the end. Either programme yourself
to get published and then let it go, leaving time and happenstance to play its
trick; or use the scientific approach – keep on slogging: you might not end up
with what you were searching for, but the road took you onto another discovery
just as amazing).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Self-publish
and be damned! And it does actually bring in revenue and a mild degree of
satisfaction.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Become
a librarian.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Join
the masses of those who dream of writing and getting published – but who don’t
actually get round to doing it. It makes life easier.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">And one
for the (long) road: </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Believe</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">. While
there are indisputably some manuscripts that miss the boat (a bit like Pete Best
and the Beatles), the vast majority of manuscripts that are published do
actually deserve it. Trust in the teams at the publishers: they </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">do </i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">know if a story will sell. They </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">do</i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> know if something is special and
deserves it. It might just be your story. </span></li>
</ul>
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<b><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "sans-serif";"><span style="color: #f1c232;">Useful links</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.writersandartists.co.uk/" target="_blank">TheArtist & Writers’ Yearbook + more</a></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://publishedtodeath.blogspot.fr/p/publishers-looking-for-authors.html" target="_blank">Publishersaccepting unsolicited manuscripts</a></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.google.fr/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=agents+accepting+unsolicited+manuscripts+2016" target="_blank">Agentswilling to have a peek</a></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://ebookpartnership.com/" target="_blank">Self-publishing</a></span></li>
</ul>
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Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-47312458597657184162015-07-18T21:04:00.000+02:002016-08-02T13:05:15.543+02:00July in France: Getting ready for the Big Sleep<br />
<h2 class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">Long musings with a whiff of gentle irony<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></h2>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQvkBGdMeuh60nxA3d-_bOe7Y_ih0247-ckeIClvqROpbCxZhPdPBB3imVpokqxG-dXBCM0eyVWZCEdnR5FpgcsXEFEOXdyZmvXx9CCiTTRZg4EYz13g29WAskPHD_SXGG4axVlQdXx66L/s1600/Tom+Gamble.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQvkBGdMeuh60nxA3d-_bOe7Y_ih0247-ckeIClvqROpbCxZhPdPBB3imVpokqxG-dXBCM0eyVWZCEdnR5FpgcsXEFEOXdyZmvXx9CCiTTRZg4EYz13g29WAskPHD_SXGG4axVlQdXx66L/s200/Tom+Gamble.PNG" width="168" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;">Living and working in France, each July-August sees the
country change dramatically – a sort of inversed hibernation period in which no-one does much and nothing much happens at all. Everything slowly switches to
“Latin” mode, a great yawn of relief after the “Anglo-Saxon” mad rush from September
to June, exacerbated by the fact that the poor French have to cram their work objectives into their shortened 35-hour working
week and numerous bank holidays. This together with "RTT" - day in lieu according to “Reduction
in Working Time” policy - and the famous “Pont (bridge)”, another day offered
between bank holidays to stretch out the weekend into a vast and luxurious 4
days’ rest. Some would call this…paradise. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Parisians leave Paris for the beaches of the west and
south – a great relief to both those who stay on in the city and for the
tourists visiting the capital: a two-month slot almost empty of sour-faced
impoliteness. Those on the beach (the Parisians mostly – 25% of the whole population)
suddenly become themselves – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nice people</i>
– and once rising from their bronzing positions on the sands, it is dreamily
sauntering past the paper shop and on the way to eat four-course evening meals
that they learn that the outside world is still functioning: the odd coup d’état
here (while the former leader is probably sunning it up on exactly the same
beach as the Parisian), the odd earthquake there; an unobserved innovation –
like say, the Internet super-highway – that the country misses out on during
the big sleep and subsequently has to peddle like mad for the next ten years to
catch it up. Paradoxically, it is then the turn of all the inhabitants of the
coastal areas to rush about like madmen as they host, feed and coax the
holiday-makers from the capital to spend their money. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyO945tANNw20mSvhaXl8Ur1SM58kf0wJ9C4aAZb0P9BcM9p_lvrHZZc_nYQWAmpsVyr9_pi1Cs6Na11h8o8o0q4zY2-lbnRfi0SGJBqGvNZdJ_iOp54v8VE_b4qLP4WOV3UvG5vPchNJP/s1600/sleep_-_le_sommeil__1937__salvador_dali1354730939390.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyO945tANNw20mSvhaXl8Ur1SM58kf0wJ9C4aAZb0P9BcM9p_lvrHZZc_nYQWAmpsVyr9_pi1Cs6Na11h8o8o0q4zY2-lbnRfi0SGJBqGvNZdJ_iOp54v8VE_b4qLP4WOV3UvG5vPchNJP/s320/sleep_-_le_sommeil__1937__salvador_dali1354730939390.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was said that Dali had many big sleeps...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;">All this means that the hangers-on in greater Paris – the small-business
owners, lowly paid civil servants, the friendless, the divorced, the childless
couples waiting to have the beach only for themselves in September
when the screaming kids go back to school, or simply those waiting to squeeze in
a long weekend or two of rest somewhere during the two months – suddenly find
themselves bathed in an almost surreal calm. There are no train strikes – the railway
workers gleefully keeping this in store for the traditional back-to-term strike
in October-November. There is hardly any traffic. Road-rage suddenly evaporates and the
last, festive nation-wide burning of cars already belongs to the past. Bastille Day, 14<sup>th</sup>
July, “only” led to 600 cars being burnt across the country according to a
government official speaking on the radio. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg8FZJ-g-wLxBoIDhxewmyUzIwmQMFzVxpJ83vtOffC7MVhiEhPGbRIEnGwqwWCWpE1Yc4j_UgfcwstNr_NvLcC4QikASuyIPyM7FbQ7SXp5KpBXnGoGDrVjRb8g9pfU6WRmUtlVCc4R4F/s1600/Tom+Gamble+the+Big+Sleep.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg8FZJ-g-wLxBoIDhxewmyUzIwmQMFzVxpJ83vtOffC7MVhiEhPGbRIEnGwqwWCWpE1Yc4j_UgfcwstNr_NvLcC4QikASuyIPyM7FbQ7SXp5KpBXnGoGDrVjRb8g9pfU6WRmUtlVCc4R4F/s1600/Tom+Gamble+the+Big+Sleep.gif" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No doubt inspired by their holiday in Paris</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;">It is a well-earned heaven. And the days automatically seem
to stretch long and elastically into the night with aperitifs sipped by open
windows giving out to empty and silent streets. And it is also the perfect time
for the mind to meander and philosophise instead of thinking about objectives
and potential delays in the public transport that will hamper you reaching
them. One may take one’s time to read, stroll or go for a dip in the deserted municipal
swimming pool. And one’s mind may also be allowed to think of silly things like
love, the meaning of life, writing a book or poem, true happiness, getting
fit, repairing the shower curtain that had collapsed in February, inventions
and ideas. Letting my mind really wander far, these silly ideas might just include one or some of the following:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">An international job search watchdog that would
advise job-seekers on which companies and institutions to avoid, simply by
trying out their absurdly unfathomable and truthfully unanswerable online job application
forms. The sort that are 6 web pages long and contain lots of boxes, none of
which suit your profile details, and which prohibit you from moving on to the
next question unless you click one of their categories: “Right – okay – so I’ll
just click on 'PhD in Duck Watching' even though I’m trying to get the job
advertised as 'office clerk'”. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">A law that would see a vast educational training
programme get underway for drivers in the Paris region. Large, digital displays
would be set up along the main routes informing people that they only have to
do four things to avoid creating traffic jams: 1) Instead of accelerating and closing
ranks to those wishing to join the highway, simply let them in. 2) Keep in lane,
keep your distance. 3) Drive at a steady 30-40 km/h without fail along the stretch
of congested road until it quite naturally becomes flowing again thanks to your
exemplary conduct. 4) Refrain from gesticulating obscenely at the
drivers of other cars – anger causes acceleration! <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">A multinational “Bullshit detector club”, where
a group of enthusiasts bent on the truth and openness to the citizens of the world
would watch their national news every day for one week every month and note
down how many times the news speaker lets rip with overtly patriotic or
xenophobic remarks destined to hoodwink the scared, desperate or uneducated
into being grateful (and, quite handily, at the same time willing to swallow
the increase in taxes and energy bills due for November). Things like “Our X, the
most beautiful capital in the world”; “the most X (meaning “like us”) of the
Spanish football players on the field”; “We have the best national health
system in the world” (true, thirty-five years ago and now just as hampered by
under-staffing and waiting queues as any other system of the late 1940s); “No-one
can rival our world-beating food (while handily forgetting that many national recipes were adopted or stolen from the Italians, Austrians, Morrocans, etc.)”; “We possess the most beautiful avenue in the world - naturally”; “the
Chinese / Polish / Ukrainians / Romanians, etc. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>are taking our jobs” (when everyone forgets
that they actually work very well and very hard and are unhampered by corporate
taxes which choke national employment initiatives to death); or “X, our beautiful,
historical and great county, will resist this new plague that is globalisation
and defend our interests” (Funny… I thought globalisation started 1.5 million
years ago when Homo Erectus left Africa to find resources elsewhere…We might
not be here if they hadn’t). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">A worldwide training initiative for directors
and managers to help them find something different to say other than “we don’t
have the budget”, and then go on to hire cousins, uncles, aunts and nephews in
the week that follows. While this may be accepted by young newbies on eternal
short-term contracts and managers and directors who use it as an off-the-shelf
standard to avoid conflict, a 40-50 year-old having worked in many fields
throughout his/her working life knows it to be complete flatulence. On second
thoughts, maybe it’s best to keep the “we don’t have the budget” phrase – if the
truth were to be told the whole system might be in danger of collapsing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "calibri";">And finally, a worldwide ban on all telephone
answering machines leading you through an absurd labyrinth of options, none of
which are suited to the real subject of your call, and which require endless
pushing of numbers and hash tags (on my phone, a twelve-year old Nokia, I have
to push two buttons to access the hash – meaning that by the time I manage to finally
press a third time on the right icon, the answering machine has moved on to the
next option and I have to start all over again). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Usually government-body instigated (despite
even higher taxes they still can’t afford to hire real people to offer human assistance
and contact), or incredibly the telecoms companies themselves, these machines
are characterised by mutant digital voices ordering you what to do, and
interspersed with overly loud jingles – seemingly composed on a Bontempi organ,
the kind offered to 5 year-olds at Christmas during the 1970-80s – of Dave Brubeck’s
“Take 5”. At times the machine goes wonky – giving off feedback and suddenly
turning into a rendition worthy of Jimi Hendrix’s 1969 Woodstock version of The
Star Spangled Banner. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;">So there one goes. And it's positively time to chill out, after all. A parting word might be that July and August are the most truthful months in which to call France the land of the free. Other ideas may come, or maybe even yours. Welcome are they…</span><br />
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "times new roman";"></span><br />
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYR9fmZ9Cpp-ERkKqTMOmUjXqeidD0zxFUoEdhuu-CYsFKSukT2xzTD0oTeH6aIp42NPu1ecdnhFyWoJyYf0fmyX78YQdFRwJrQMELcgubg-3PunO2s1C0Uctmq2sXmcpxx5-vMUnyl9Ew/s1600/17092014518.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYR9fmZ9Cpp-ERkKqTMOmUjXqeidD0zxFUoEdhuu-CYsFKSukT2xzTD0oTeH6aIp42NPu1ecdnhFyWoJyYf0fmyX78YQdFRwJrQMELcgubg-3PunO2s1C0Uctmq2sXmcpxx5-vMUnyl9Ew/s320/17092014518.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;">
</span>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">And
now, as a July evening in western Paris stretches deliciously and cat-like into
oncoming night, a glass of the hard stuff suitably chilled in hand, with the
sun hovering and hesitating to part, I bid you soft and silly things wherever
you are, if only for a moment stolen.</span> </span></span> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sleep long, sleep tight.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;"></span><br />
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: large;">Tom ;-)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">
</span><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;"></span> </span><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: small;"></span><!--[endif]--><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><br />
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman";">
<span style="font-size: small;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: small;">
</span></span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-35363425362418101222015-07-01T22:16:00.000+02:002015-07-01T22:16:14.098+02:00György Faludy: a hell of a good read<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">“My Happy Days in Hell”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></h2>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj87o4LBayf4j_hGhfZsnJ0Ej0imJdhf6bYKIJKG-H8kmxBT2MWouybK0IJKyq4KNgPYsAuFz3oDJVOp6loDme3zWL57zh903IMHic8di_B62gELgGdHJGv8g_d7xd-j1LPXVYukU7q1dq/s1600/My+Happy+days+in+Hell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj87o4LBayf4j_hGhfZsnJ0Ej0imJdhf6bYKIJKG-H8kmxBT2MWouybK0IJKyq4KNgPYsAuFz3oDJVOp6loDme3zWL57zh903IMHic8di_B62gELgGdHJGv8g_d7xd-j1LPXVYukU7q1dq/s1600/My+Happy+days+in+Hell.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">The question begs: am
I talking about my current context? Well, we have down days and we have up
days, though luckily most of them are the latter. No, what I’m really referring
to is the book by Hungarian poet-translator-writer </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gy%C3%B6rgy_Faludy" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">György Faludy</span></strong></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">. And one of
the issues with this is that as usual, whenever I read a book I fall in love
with, I tend to end up living it out for real! <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">First published in 1962 – coincidently about the time Günter Grass
published the Tin Drum – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Happy-Days-Hell-Gyorgy-Faludy/dp/0141193204" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">My Happy Days in Hell</span></strong></a></i> was only allowed for publication in his native Hungary in 1988 after
the fall of the communist regime. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">I came back from a short stay in incredible Budapest with it (buying it from one of
the </span><a href="http://bestsellers.hu/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><strong>best bookshops in Europe</strong></span></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">, BTW, owned by the gentleman-philosopher Tony
Läng-Dabbous) and was enchanted from the first sentence onwards by Faludy’s incredible
courage of candidness, wicked wit, philosophical ramblings, poetic sorties into
love and nature, and finally chilling reality. If you were to put Grass’ <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Tin Drum</i>, Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s </span><a href="http://www.amazon.fr/Les-Confessions-Jean-Jacques-Rousseau/dp/2070399699" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Les</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Confessions</i></span></strong></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>William Boyd’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/77844.The_New_Confessions" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">Les Nouvelles Confessions</span></strong></a></i> all into a <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>meat grinder and push the start button, two
minutes later you’d come out with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">My
Happy Days in Hell</i> but spiced with a unique nip of Faludy paprika. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiynMbl4971A8moPkRebLI6kuAJSRCh0xMeJ5926OOH-U7YS1qn5QR0-vhxjrGL2aRItMQJGQGfce2COWyqAQEO3m9h3D1uKFW1BAK854ig17lq1SMqilU8QhTsFztWk8ZX5gsfWtBanBKT/s1600/Gyorgy+Faludy+on+Tom+Gamble%2527s+blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiynMbl4971A8moPkRebLI6kuAJSRCh0xMeJ5926OOH-U7YS1qn5QR0-vhxjrGL2aRItMQJGQGfce2COWyqAQEO3m9h3D1uKFW1BAK854ig17lq1SMqilU8QhTsFztWk8ZX5gsfWtBanBKT/s320/Gyorgy+Faludy+on+Tom+Gamble%2527s+blog.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">György Faludy</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Over
the past three weeks, Faludy’s book has become a companion, a friend. We share
the same heady mixture of feelings for Morocco, the same dislike of extremes,
the same reactions when faced with the absurd, the same love of nature and, why
not, of Womankind. It is a biography that follows his escape from Hungary just
before the outset of WW II, his life in Paris and then the necessity to flee
the Nazi invasion to end up in Portugal and then Morocco and finally the
United States where he eventually volunteered for the US army. In 1947, true to his love of
the Hungarian language and believing in a democratic future, he returned to
Hungary, only to be arrested by the Communists several years later. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheLesJ_8BfNeT0Jd02uSyspT7JTvavf_5dKhOF7_8PlMoI7VvgdHdd4TDizMiJCmuOfPwXq3pv015QGK-n7bVSjG_5T8-L3z-9FIeAEanuVhatlgflIXp2N7SBz9YWZWFbXnjCiOUlU69n/s1600/IMG_3336.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheLesJ_8BfNeT0Jd02uSyspT7JTvavf_5dKhOF7_8PlMoI7VvgdHdd4TDizMiJCmuOfPwXq3pv015QGK-n7bVSjG_5T8-L3z-9FIeAEanuVhatlgflIXp2N7SBz9YWZWFbXnjCiOUlU69n/s320/IMG_3336.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: small;">Not-so-hellish for me, after all</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">He spent 3 years in a
labour camp on trumped up charges – and this is where I am currently at, fifty
pages from the end. I cannot stop putting down the book to gasp in amazement: caught
between laughing out loud and choking down the tears of shock and indignation.
If you want something to churn your emotions inside out, then György Faludy’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">My Happy Days in Hell</i> is definately for
you! It kind of makes you step back a little from your own minor moments of
hell at the office and sigh in relief at just how heavenly they are... </span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Read
more about the amazing life of György Faludy on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gy%C3%B6rgy_Faludy" target="_blank"><strong>Wikipedia</strong></a><strong>.</strong> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></span><o:p></o:p> </span> </span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-9437523496250053282015-05-01T12:28:00.000+02:002015-05-01T12:28:51.287+02:00Thank (the) heaven(s) for rainy days
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-size: x-large;">6 books that changed (at least) my world</span></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">It’s a rainy, cold-ish 1<sup>st</sup> of May in
northern France where I live. Not the sort of weather to stay outside too long.
But one of those days – and moreover a bank holiday – where the delicious
opportunity arises to just…not do anything much in particular but take your
time and nonchalantly peruse your bookshelf you haven’t had the time or thought
to peruse for ages!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMToLlvGGxBDnulrgbIpytGGECKtfhzX3JSz_wNAdVloitndbFeyqSRhd6vvxiy-bdHYoVHmp3VAfxz4hEBpL-VoIa4ar8BlBexdWk4s0xcyK4uUMFMlfRN7XpKhWVoOKXCjW9-2BNIyhe/s1600/steinbeck-cannery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMToLlvGGxBDnulrgbIpytGGECKtfhzX3JSz_wNAdVloitndbFeyqSRhd6vvxiy-bdHYoVHmp3VAfxz4hEBpL-VoIa4ar8BlBexdWk4s0xcyK4uUMFMlfRN7XpKhWVoOKXCjW9-2BNIyhe/s1600/steinbeck-cannery.jpg" height="320" width="216" /></a><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #d0e0e3;">I finish off my breakfast of buttered toast and sweet pear
jam, enjoy a hot cup of black coffee I insist on preparing with a Bodum (none
of your fancy Clooney machines here) and finish it all off with the day’s
first, and best, cigarette (we only live once, and I refuse to feel guilty for
this pleasure in an existence). The ritual over, I realise that my gaze is
hovering over my bookshelf. I get up, walk over, and begin – as though looking
at something anew – to study what’s on it. I surprise myself by realising that
as I discover the titles one-by-one, I’m actually producing little <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hums </i>and<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> aahs</i>: either falling upon a title I’d forgotten I’d once bought or
else coming across my good friends, the ones I’ve kept with me ever since adolescence:
and the ones that changed my world, changed my life, all those years ago. I
extract them, flick through the pages, fall upon scribbled comments, read the
odd passage that I should by now know by heart – and decide to write this post.</span>
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #ffd966;">First, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cannery
Row</i> by John Steinbeck. I don’t have the original with the provocative cover
(for the era it must have been a shocker), but I do have several different
publications in English and in French. How did it change my world? My father
recommended it to me and it made me understand that people are basically good
anywhere you go in the world. That despite trials and errors, we can make it up
somehow by showing tolerance, friendship and simply giving and that, really,
simplicity is one of the best gifts we can ever inherit. This a must for those
blue moments that occasionally come: pick it up, open the cover, and from the
first page onwards life becomes sunshine again.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj58mWq1XbM3aT-SlFP_00cqJr0ZCieLLSqpi5A-CXbx1k44if52LEiohD5tCX1e2D7A5jVKggBs02U2idPvs6AuP1jfZLZjBGaQYj-L-8LqJWCFx3fnzQ8gWKlS4N7xe1gy7X5X3Mzaq5P/s1600/George+Orwell+Tom+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj58mWq1XbM3aT-SlFP_00cqJr0ZCieLLSqpi5A-CXbx1k44if52LEiohD5tCX1e2D7A5jVKggBs02U2idPvs6AuP1jfZLZjBGaQYj-L-8LqJWCFx3fnzQ8gWKlS4N7xe1gy7X5X3Mzaq5P/s1600/George+Orwell+Tom+Gamble.jpg" height="200" width="110" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">Second, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Down and
Out in Paris and London</i>, by George Orwell. I first read this on moving to
London from a small seaside town when I nineteen. In those days I was a young
idealist, a young adventurer convinced that everything would be an obvious
success on the road to happiness. Several weeks after reading this book I was
living it out for real and learning that adventure could sometimes be
desperate, dangerous and at times sordid. Still – I learned some lessons, some
of which I must admit, I still haven’t completely mastered!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Third, William Boyd’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">An Ice-Cream War</i>. Back then, Boyd was the first British writer for
ages who managed to produce something stunning in terms of a damn good read:
funny, intelligent, ironic, tragic and exotic. I’ve read all his books ever
since – even when he went, for ten years or so, out of the publishing fashion.
Luckily, he’s back. And if you want to learn anything about how the British
tick, then his books are a must.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPyW-em9zl4ZN5M3Wecktbu1gOqRzldIXUevDyYlx5KJWbYLm8vGhHWPDI5exj9egCVokhKT3_Wrip-o4qiFcgOkvKOEH8GY2GTwoNrA9FL1GL5pNv4y6gtNcqwlFRl018SXb9YFyJmSUS/s1600/William+Boyd+Tom+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPyW-em9zl4ZN5M3Wecktbu1gOqRzldIXUevDyYlx5KJWbYLm8vGhHWPDI5exj9egCVokhKT3_Wrip-o4qiFcgOkvKOEH8GY2GTwoNrA9FL1GL5pNv4y6gtNcqwlFRl018SXb9YFyJmSUS/s1600/William+Boyd+Tom+Gamble.jpg" height="200" width="130" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZpPPq7WqI6zrqLhFdbO28BJFK8GH7LkTnY3CqIq0kbaqeGiekE0qo8_mnSGa0KGr9xvveYMeeoayvYR81QQEmME_tZf-BxPTtP6fO3ED07Gh3g0wRvgS97zd7kJUQshLjVcCs1wI3OqsU/s1600/The+Tin+Drum+Gunter+Grass+Tom+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZpPPq7WqI6zrqLhFdbO28BJFK8GH7LkTnY3CqIq0kbaqeGiekE0qo8_mnSGa0KGr9xvveYMeeoayvYR81QQEmME_tZf-BxPTtP6fO3ED07Gh3g0wRvgS97zd7kJUQshLjVcCs1wI3OqsU/s1600/The+Tin+Drum+Gunter+Grass+Tom+Gamble.jpg" height="200" width="145" /></a><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">Fourth: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Tin
Drum</i>, by Günter Grass. Wow. I first read this when I was fifteen. And it
was probably the book that really made me want to write. Weird and fantastical,
with a tangle of styles and stories, sometimes hilarious, sometimes revolting,
other times killing in its stark realism: it made me travel throughout Germany
and write those first, copy-cat style stories that if you weren’t called Günter
Grass no-one would ever read. Grass recently died, and was for some quite controversial.
But it can’t be denied that he captured a certain feeling that was the Europe
of the ‘50s-‘80s.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCyv7KhU1QrM_wgICqACtg8rAM7wo6K_wN0QHIebcjetWjSKrNT57vqwWqHGJ2BzqzBnbK5ued3goORPbplrcHxcEYX840RVshR99EicvKq2cynHVJbFhYoB7VS60PeK0vFl_CGKuM0CL/s1600/Neil+Astley+Tom+Gamble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCyv7KhU1QrM_wgICqACtg8rAM7wo6K_wN0QHIebcjetWjSKrNT57vqwWqHGJ2BzqzBnbK5ued3goORPbplrcHxcEYX840RVshR99EicvKq2cynHVJbFhYoB7VS60PeK0vFl_CGKuM0CL/s1600/Neil+Astley+Tom+Gamble.jpg" height="200" width="130" /></a><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #d0e0e3;">Fifthly, the anthology of poetry <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Staying Alive</i> edited by Neil Astley (who once wrote me a rejection
slip basically informing me my poems were crap. Thanks, Neil – but it didn’t
stop me from reading the trilogy over-and-over every year). <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Staying Alive</i> is so vast, so complete, that
you never get bored with it. It has travelled with me everywhere – train journeys,
planes, continents, the office and on all those other, emotional, journeys too.
It is a compass and has the uncanny ability to point you in the right direction
when all seems lost, including you.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #f4cccc;">And sixth, and last, that incredibly simple,
incredibly powerful book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Alchemist </i>by
Paulo Coelho. Together with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cannery Row</i>,
it’s the book I’ve offered most to others as a present and a message I’ve
always carried with me. It picks you up, sends you soaring up into the wide
blue sky of hope and belief – both in yourself and in Humankind. Perhaps, one
day, The Alchemist will be honoured with a Nobel. Deservedly.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #fff2cc;">So thank heavens for rainy days! They make you do the
cleaning, take extra care with the cooking, explore the jumble-sale of a
neglected cupboard, watch an old favourite film and…return, intrigued, to the
bookshelf that shaped your world. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #fff2cc;">Enjoy this rainy day and all those that will come. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #fff2cc;">Tom ;-)</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></h2>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-89221232598528985022015-02-28T21:40:00.000+01:002015-02-28T21:50:10.356+01:00The slippery path of fiction writing<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffd966; font-size: large;">When
the plot takes over control</span></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #fff2cc;">Some strange things happen to those of us who write. One
of these is when the plot takes on a life of its own and leads the author where
he or she doesn’t want to go.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></h2>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">Coincidence
twenty years on</span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">This is happening to me. And either very aptly, or
very bizarrely, I gave the title <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Strange
Roads</i> to the story when I began it a year ago. </span></span><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">It all started out with a coincidence. Nearly twenty
years ago I visited a part of the French countryside to the west of Paris and
came across the tombs of 3 young British soldiers killed in action on August 28<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>,
1944. At 23 I was older than they were when they had died. This caused quite an
inner stir in me and I noted them down in my diary, paid my respects, and left.
And the years passed. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">Last autumn, I happened to be out on a Sunday hike. Nearing
a river in the Epte valley, I came across a small, stone monument. And incredibly,
here were the same 3 names I’d seen all those years ago. It was the place where
their tank had gone up in flames. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">I took it as a sign to write something for them. A
novel in their honour. Initial mind-mapping (I use Buzan’s technique to map out
ideas and plots), brought me the characters, the story, twelve chapters and an
ending. All that had to be done was follow the motorway and write the thing.</span> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">The building of the pontoon at Vernon, days before the attack up the Epte
valley, August 1944. Courtesy, British Pathé News.</span></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><em><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">Battling with the mischievous muse</span></em></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: white;">So I began writing. Three months gave me six written chapters
and a further five planned as the story matured: Strange Roads, a story set in
1947 with the return of Jack Kemp to France and the homage he had to pay to his
fallen comrades (with of course, a lively description of the local folks, their
surroundings, and a love story with a local school mistress that all ends
happily!). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: white;">And then the story began to take control. Story or
characters? Some of them started getting nasty. The story not
only traced the beginnings of love between the two key characters, but suddenly
began to detour into the sexual inclinations of both the primary <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</i> the secondary characters – not only
adding spice, but also a heavy dose of intrigue. I tried to steer the story
back on course. To no avail. Added to the blushingly torrid sex scenes, came a
ghastly putsch with the characters leading the pen (or keyboard in these modern
times!) flowing towards a thriller à la Hitchcock! <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Come back, stay sweet, stay high-brow</i>, my mind shouted. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I don’t like thrillers! </i>But the
characters – or perhaps what Elizabeth Gilbert (cf </span><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">TED</span></strong></a></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: white;">)
would call our mischievously creative muse – had decided to plunge the book
into a revolution and take the path of blackmail, murder, hidden treasure, hidden
truths and hidden identities.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: white;">The last time I wrote was during the Christmas break –
when out and about, a couple of historical discoveries concerning the Knights
Templar in the region and an apparent French government attempt to hush up a
local gardener who knew too many secrets about the treasure in the 1950s, added
oil to the flames. The thirty or so pages hammered out between mouthfuls of
Christmas pud’ read like a sexed-up mix of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Good German</i> (Jospeh Kanon – the book is light years better than the botched
attempt at catching the spirit of the 1940s of the film) and Hitchcock’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Rear Window</i> (originally a short story written
by a certain Cornell Woolrich). I didn’t want it to be. But it was. Unable to
control things, steering far down a stranger road than I had set out upon, I
decided to give it all a break.</span> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span><br />
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><em>Decision time</em></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: white;">No, the story wasn’t turning out to be a deeply
poignant tribute to loss and love. And maybe, the thought came to me, I wasn’t
meant or even capable of writing such stuff (too bad for the inclusion of his
nibs in the great annals of Anglo-Saxon literary works). It is now decision
time: scrap the whole thing, tear out the thriller-sex, coerce my story back
onto its original path, make it nice? Or give in to the crankiness of the
characters, accept the popular fiction label, and risk going down the silly track
of lost treasures and torrid sex scenes (something that seems to get miles more
publicity in the UK/US than a serious message in a story)?</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">It isn’t writing
that isn’t easy: it’s creating a good plot</span></span></i></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjezKa3g25hACc9-1sxqTs7RPmnvcuc4xhp-mJVqrb0FYu1nyW2juWWfp_HSyoopd1IydYO9-LuU01728JQlmikpvnQrDR4rY8r0bx2Zvm2nvJHO23uOvI0pqbOaX962LNGRo1AOTidej20/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Charles+Dickens.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjezKa3g25hACc9-1sxqTs7RPmnvcuc4xhp-mJVqrb0FYu1nyW2juWWfp_HSyoopd1IydYO9-LuU01728JQlmikpvnQrDR4rY8r0bx2Zvm2nvJHO23uOvI0pqbOaX962LNGRo1AOTidej20/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Charles+Dickens.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tom Gamble waiting for Dickens to open the door</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">One thing I have learnt (or been reminded of, to be
more exact) is that it isn’t writing that isn’t easy. It is creating a plot. And
a good plot at that. Time and time again, the writing process is filled with
trial and doubt – “would the character actually do that? Does this sound
convincing? Won’t people think that’s silly (or worse still, crap)? Aren’t I
giving up my values?” are constant recalls to review, re-write, re-think. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
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<span style="color: white; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">Will <em>Strange
Roads</em> continue down its strange path to thrillerdom? At this stage, I don’t
know. I wanted to pay tribute to three young British soldiers – 17, 19 and 21
years old – who were in a tank, in a French valley under the pouring rain of
late August 1944, and who lost their lives for something that for our generations
has “softened” with time. Maybe the best way to pay tribute is lay down the
poppies on Poppy day and say a little prayer for them of gratitude. And let the
story go down the road it wants to.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Tom Gamble is author of the novels </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Amazir-Novel-Morocco-Tom-Gamble/dp/1905636970" target="_blank"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Amazir</span></a><span style="color: #93c47d;"> and </span><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tom-Gamble/e/B00J5GXF9I/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1" target="_blank"><span style="color: #93c47d;">TheKingdom of Emptiness</span></a><span style="color: #93c47d;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<o:p></o:p><br /></div>
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<o:p></o:p> </div>
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</span></span><br />Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-56186990746655427662015-02-08T23:06:00.001+01:002015-02-08T23:06:58.905+01:00The Dream Machine in one stunning free download! <h2>
<span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">9</span><span style="color: #f1c232;"> Steps to achieve what you really want</span></span></span></h2>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">In the run up to Christmas 2014, I posted the "Dream Machine", step by step. Here it is, as a last blast, in its full 9-step format. </span><br />
<span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">What is it? Well, if you:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Want to write a book</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Do a world tour</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Start up a business</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Sell your paintings</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Go to university</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Move home</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Be an actor or actress</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Buy you dream car</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Change your life</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Or even change your kitchen sink</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Plus a million other things - either objectives or dreams...</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Then the Dream Machine s for you. A 9-step self-coaching tool to plan, analyse, check and achieve what you desire! It worked for me, and it's worked for others.</span> </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnok9CPT-iZpkJHEqE_vxp3xlYn4sjrqsOMlQqO2WEr8POY3kOgYmC-wu1cijR-B8owqNG88DMrGxMz5JIttxMz6dTum15t0vC3Gw0-JN5StlOu4duo6hSjVnvDLOxZNLQT5MnTKSGae6A/s1600/romantic+novel+of+the+year.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnok9CPT-iZpkJHEqE_vxp3xlYn4sjrqsOMlQqO2WEr8POY3kOgYmC-wu1cijR-B8owqNG88DMrGxMz5JIttxMz6dTum15t0vC3Gw0-JN5StlOu4duo6hSjVnvDLOxZNLQT5MnTKSGae6A/s1600/romantic+novel+of+the+year.JPG" height="228" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amazir with the other finalists.That's me. Er - on the right!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Click on the link </span><a href="http://www.tomgamble.org/#!resources/c1fxk" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #ffd966;">www.tomgamble.org</span></strong></a><span style="color: #76a5af;"> </span><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">to download it from my professional site. Good luck with your dreams!</span> </span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-61510000918860160752015-01-05T12:58:00.001+01:002015-01-05T13:01:32.007+01:00Not something to accompany an afternoon nap...<h2>
<span style="color: #ffd966; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">She Was So East - The Moodfield</span></h2>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Latest version with a jingly-jangly thingy at the end and lyrics!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/Y3TAvzmpryQ?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-66416374403156569302014-12-31T10:44:00.000+01:002014-12-31T10:44:16.730+01:00A tribute to Maurice Henry Gamble<h2>
<span style="color: #ffd966; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">36 Exposures and Vibrance Care Homes UK</span></h2>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Two bits of news - <strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tom-Gamble/e/B005YHHGUG" target="_blank"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">36 Exposures</span></a></strong> isn't exactly selling in its thousands. BUT, promise kept, a donation to </span><a href="http://www.vibrance.org.uk/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: yellow;">Vibrance Care Homes UK</span></strong></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"> has been made, in part, from the proceeds! That's satisfying and a big thank you to all those who bought a copy.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijUwjHQTWpFTU7ZtegsdHb_BLLnjzE2h9X_4CFOlI-hQu9GB1G96i3YRhugiDjz8wa231WTM_b29RFjF8u-Yvhf64MvQqqMrF8eFy89r5aZf3gOeSt2mmdnrlcz0R_byeU-6zLxv-KpRj7/s1600/Maurice!.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijUwjHQTWpFTU7ZtegsdHb_BLLnjzE2h9X_4CFOlI-hQu9GB1G96i3YRhugiDjz8wa231WTM_b29RFjF8u-Yvhf64MvQqqMrF8eFy89r5aZf3gOeSt2mmdnrlcz0R_byeU-6zLxv-KpRj7/s1600/Maurice!.JPG" height="320" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Maurice! With all our love!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Know that there's a story behind the choice of this: thanks to a lovely aunt (no names, Marilyn), I learnt of the story of Maurice Henry Gamble, recently gone on to green, happy and sunny pastures. Maurice was born with a handicap back in the 1930s and due to a life-threatening illness, his mother was obliged to put him into care at the age of 5. In 1986, Marilyn's mother, Patricia, traced him back with the help of the Salvation Army and, once found, was able to offer Maurice much love and presence during his final years under the devoted and cheerful care of the folk who work for Vibrance. Thank you, </span><a href="http://www.vibrance.org.uk/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: yellow;">Vibrance</span></strong></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="color: yellow;">.</span> And a thought for all those you continue to look after. </span><span style="color: #93c47d;">Tom xxx</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">From Maurice's eulology:</span></strong> <br />
<br />
<span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #ffd966;">Maurice flourished, being lovingly cared for by compassionate
staff at Glengall Road, where they embraced his determination to keep his
mobility despite his disability, endured his stubbornness and understood his
funny little ways such as the shake of his head when saying ‘NO’, ‘NO’,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>which really, meant ‘Yes’. Many will recall
his appreciative smile that said it all, when a pint of beer placed in his hand,
was drunk in less than a minute, and his food would disappear pretty quickly as
well. </span><br />
<span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #ffd966;">From the
dark years spent in institutions, Maurice’s life completely turned for the
better, he found happiness and contentment by enjoying many outings with his
carers and resident friends, going to workshops, listening to music and many
holidays by the sea. <span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What was
there not to love about Maurice, he was always ready to give you a cuddle with
a cheeky smile on his face. <span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‘Thank you Maurice’, for touching our lives and
leaving us with Happy Memories!</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span lang="EN-AU" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span> </span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-72273588636593867752014-12-20T13:18:00.000+01:002014-12-20T13:20:20.075+01:00A Christmas dream come true...<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">The Dream Machine – STEP 9:</span> <em><span style="color: #cc0000;">LIFT
OFF!</span></em></span> </span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">So this is it – and just in time for Christmas:
the last step before setting out towards the New Year and a glimmer of
springtime and the lengthening of days not too far off. Resolute, confident, motivated,
the beholder of options should the path become tricky, hopeful, strong and –
why not – with just that little pinch of cockiness in your attitude.</span> <br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVQvb9n9VMs-Xoe1UCRhowX4fKkpJe5rafincqsXyUn-NnJ-af-YoXK7EChc29TCGbLQdttkTBFN_VsTkT551vqtlI6YNJkcZ1e2JdRVWPXjoNGW_5WQJZexfl3whMFOWn9efby0a260o/s1600/Step9_Christmas_Tom+Gamble_Dream+Machine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVQvb9n9VMs-Xoe1UCRhowX4fKkpJe5rafincqsXyUn-NnJ-af-YoXK7EChc29TCGbLQdttkTBFN_VsTkT551vqtlI6YNJkcZ1e2JdRVWPXjoNGW_5WQJZexfl3whMFOWn9efby0a260o/s1600/Step9_Christmas_Tom+Gamble_Dream+Machine.JPG" height="147" width="200" /></a></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">This springtime will be yours. And to make it thus,
there’s only the last step to cover. Step 9: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">THE STEP</i>. So as things draw to a close and my mind is filled with
images of you all daring to reach your dream, I’m reminded of more than twenty
years ago. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">I was a hopeful twenty-two year old. At sixteen I’d
decided that my life would be an adventure and, having had a fair taste already
of what adventure was all about – both very high and very low, I thought I’d
just check with someone in the know. Freshly settled in Paris, I’d heard of a
bookshop called Shakespeare & Co near the Notre Dame. Running the store was
no other than Walt Whitman’s grandson. I decided to go and see him, hopefully
impress him, and at least get him to introduce me to someone to get a story I’d
just written published. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">The question of clothes took some time. I went
over and over my speech. I practised smiles and postures in the mirror and
readied myself with a sample chapter typed out, spelling mistakes ‘n’ all, on a
typewriter that clattered louder than a printing press and which also combined
the indirect benefit of muscling those biceps and triceps such was the effort
required to bash away on the keys. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">When I saw him – magnificently dressed up in waistcoat,
paisley cravat and maroon-coloured corduroys and with his white hair and beard
flowing very literarily – I was scared. I hadn’t reckoned to come up against such
a charismatic figure. Thirty long minutes of following him about the shop at a
distance, pretending to peruse the books, posing foppishly by the poetry
section, and fighting a terrible inner battle between “make a run for it” and “get
in there and ask”, I finally approached him. </span></div>
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">“Are you Walt
Whitman’s grandson?” I asked. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">“Yes. I am,”
he replied in a baritone Yankee drawl that made my southern English accent
sound like the bleat of a nervous lamb in comparison.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">“I’d like to
be published,” I continued, calling up my inner reserves. “Can you help me?
Give me some tips? Perhaps,” I added, timidly, “someone’s name. Someone who can
help?” </span></div>
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">I’m not sure it was a trace of a smile that appeared
on his lips. And if it was, it quickly disappeared to be replaced by a frown
that in all appearances read, in giant letters in the air above his head, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">who the hell is this joker? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">“Son,” he
said, booming much too loudly across the whole store. “What the hell are you
asking me all that for? Goddamit, all you have to do is get out there and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">write</i> the damn thing!” <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">That was it. My
fifteen seconds of mentoring from the grandson of a literary giant. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Er – thanks,”
I blurted, and headed straight for the exit door wondering whether it was time
to plunge into the river Seine and end it all there and then.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Y’welcome. Have
a great day!” he called after me. </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">It took a few
days to get over this truly humiliating experience. Two days of blaming the
Yanks for speaking too loud, being too bolshie, reverting to the over-simplistic,
being unfeeling and ungrateful. After all, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">we’d</i>
financed the colonies in the first place. And George Washington had been a
captain in the British Army trouncing the Native Americans down south before
everyone got upset about some spilt tea and decided to boot the British out (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">read the history books, by the way</i>)! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">But gradually,
I came to realise he was right. Was there genius in such a short and sharp
answer? And why indeed did I actually want to be published? Also, why had I
decided to write and not become a City banker, government accountant, brain
surgeon, star footballer or take up some other incredibly useful and simpler vocation?
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I realised</i>. It was so stunningly
simple, it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was</i> genius. Because in the
end, it just boils down (tea again!) to one thing: just do it.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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words to you on this eve of Christmas and armed with the 9 steps are just that:
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">DO IT!</i></span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tom-Gamble/e/B005YHHGUG" target="_blank"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Still proudly (best)selling</span></a>!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">A truly Happy
Christmas to you all, regardless of skin, religion, capacity, language and nationality.
Have fun, embrace your neighbour (literally, if you feel like it), and see you
soon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Tom Gamble xxx</span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><strong>PS:</strong> to finish off and coming soon: The 9 Steps in a nutshell and a real and practical example of using them. And remember - <strong><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tom-Gamble/e/B005YHHGUG" target="_blank">buy the books</a></strong> featured on this blog and find a purpose for you, me, and the charities the books support. How? Simple - </span><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tom-Gamble/e/B005YHHGUG" target="_blank"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><strong>click on the links!</strong></span></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"> ;-)</span> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-42157282133612723842014-12-13T13:34:00.000+01:002014-12-13T13:34:16.641+01:00Inspire yourself...and others! <h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: large;">The Dream Machine – Step 8: ready for lift off</span> </span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">A hearty hello to all those connecting to The Dream Machine
and Step 8: The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ecosystem and Purpose</i>.
Needless to say, if you’re new to all this simply search the blog for Steps 1
to present. All you have to do is… <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do
them to reach your dream!</i></span> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDtG_KhZjq_NJifCcIBC83OVy88WDsZ8SgCeyWUEM9NS02vofnv3-ERoP-rWFwS3IXc9WeIAscwLSWHRrMnbF7MabxNlbLDK7AeZCtNEs-6q9t3NmHngGhLFKz_MV51DLVWx7Su_C0zKe7/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Purpose+and+Vision.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDtG_KhZjq_NJifCcIBC83OVy88WDsZ8SgCeyWUEM9NS02vofnv3-ERoP-rWFwS3IXc9WeIAscwLSWHRrMnbF7MabxNlbLDK7AeZCtNEs-6q9t3NmHngGhLFKz_MV51DLVWx7Su_C0zKe7/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Purpose+and+Vision.JPG" height="148" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-size: xx-small;">Click to download</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Hmm…. “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ecosystem
and Purpose</i> – sounds a bit arty farty to me”, perhaps you’re saying to
yourself. Well, maybe <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">arty</i> isn’t the
word, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">farty</i> even less so. In
fact, this is probably THE key step in the process, the journey to reach your
dream. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Maybe I can convince you by citing, among many others,
Ghandi, Steve Jobs, J.K. Rowling, Nelson Mandela, Simone Veil, Malala
Yousafzaï, Churchill, John Steinbeck and lowly Billy Brickworks who at 4.30
every morning, six days a week, polishes the floors on the London Tube. All of them
have in common one thing. And that very powerful, very positive and extremely
motivating thing is called PURPOSE. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Everything they did or do has an impact. Not only on
themselves, but on others and even systems and even the world. Billy knows that
by doing a damn good job, because he likes it, and perhaps even more than what
he’s actually paid for doing, he’s offering a pristine and comfortable
experience not only to the daily crowds of London commuters, but to the
millions of tourists too, and in doing so he gives the world a shining example
of Cool Britannia – a far cry from the Tube of the mid-80s when with cropped hair
and a fishtail parka, I myself roamed the streets and tunnels of ye olde capital
(must listen again to that anthem by </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxhN7MQ6uYw" target="_blank"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">The Jam – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Down in the Tube Station</i>).<o:p></o:p></span></a></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbSJtLd-067tQN9tD2oijs7gt25egCZJyRoKtP63uaw5E7nhEJldEDgPQSK5BAafmsvI47EWxi96wMe8I_M5TcKPG2GqklHajOIX_AqxQkyveo87r1L-KC3g6AgdjQO6cmLjs4g6wvplXb/s1600/Tom+Gamble+writer_purpose+and+vision.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbSJtLd-067tQN9tD2oijs7gt25egCZJyRoKtP63uaw5E7nhEJldEDgPQSK5BAafmsvI47EWxi96wMe8I_M5TcKPG2GqklHajOIX_AqxQkyveo87r1L-KC3g6AgdjQO6cmLjs4g6wvplXb/s1600/Tom+Gamble+writer_purpose+and+vision.PNG" height="238" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">All great and positive achievements not only give us
what we want, but give benefit to other people, systems, organisations and even
the world. And this provides us a VISION of the new world we want to create and
which others will want to belong to with us. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">A hugely beneficial secondary effect is that it gives
us the ultimate motivation to reach our dream. And somehow, without going down
the “guru” path and ending up in a loin cloth and tepee in the middle of Spain,
it also provides us with some kind of impalpable, spiritual strength too that
will accompany us over the times when the journey gets tough. Hey – if it ain’t
tough, it ain’t fun! <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">So follow the step towards your purpose and towards
your vision. We’re nearly there. Christmas is a twinkle of a star away and the
last step in the Dream Machine will reach you just before the Big Event: a gift
that comes just in time for the New Year and a fitting moment to step out
towards your dream for 2015 and beyond. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFeL4OzBp6B-0yMAB-fYI4ppRm6VFeCHvktMYKc1Xec0pStLI1NMfN77w0m2F-aLz1796SDl0DIrhLzDogpYfFDd4jcviRyfNOWw2jHMX0hjb9OG0emut0OseyAF-78YWWRy-1fdgNNkBk/s1600/Tom+Gamble_The+Dream+Machine_Purpose+and+Vision.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFeL4OzBp6B-0yMAB-fYI4ppRm6VFeCHvktMYKc1Xec0pStLI1NMfN77w0m2F-aLz1796SDl0DIrhLzDogpYfFDd4jcviRyfNOWw2jHMX0hjb9OG0emut0OseyAF-78YWWRy-1fdgNNkBk/s1600/Tom+Gamble_The+Dream+Machine_Purpose+and+Vision.JPG" height="148" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Click to download</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Take care all. Don’t forget that you can click on some
links featured on the blog to peruse and buy one of the books on sale: an extra
Xmas presie that does a whole world of good to me, you, and the charities and
people they support! <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">See you soon.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Tom ;-)</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<o:p></o:p></span> </span> </span><br />
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-75772352830600727102014-12-06T18:03:00.000+01:002014-12-06T18:38:10.902+01:00Tom Gamble looks at how to be...resourceful!<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <span style="color: #e06666;">Step 7 of the <em>dream machine</em></span> </span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span> </h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;">Welcome to Step 7 of the “dream machine”, the
effective way to identify, analyse, plan, check and reach what you’ve always
wanted – your dream! The blog features Steps 1-6 in earlier posts, so all you
have to do is search or scroll down this page.</span> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">So far, you’ve:<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Identified your dream and made a “film” of it</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">Considered how to start the ball rolling</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">Determined your motivations<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Considered others’ wants and needs as well as your own<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Determined when you want it, who with, and the
milestones on the way<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #a2c4c9; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">And last week Step 6 looked at losses, gains and higher motivations.</span> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><strong><span style="color: #e06666;">Step 7 is all about…Resources</span></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn5XJXNDd6fyi0EeVslNOYazNThfhv-av65ffdX1ydtijoH1p649Q1Bwi438at9IV40TZoNcQvMXG1Tx2cfNfPdZsTS6BQ9hTYoHP70mKJ6oLczUGe19TW1noI0FLNnI-EsWawvEBPBuS0/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Step+7_Resources.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn5XJXNDd6fyi0EeVslNOYazNThfhv-av65ffdX1ydtijoH1p649Q1Bwi438at9IV40TZoNcQvMXG1Tx2cfNfPdZsTS6BQ9hTYoHP70mKJ6oLczUGe19TW1noI0FLNnI-EsWawvEBPBuS0/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Step+7_Resources.PNG" height="148" width="200" /></a></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;">This is quite straightforward. And it’s just like when
planning a weekend away, an invite to Sunday dinner at the in-laws, or a
cycling tour of Transylvania – in short, we need to think about what resources
you’ll need (i.e. her favourite flowers, garlic and wooden stake, etc. ).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="color: #ffe599;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">But because reaching your dream – the new world, that
change that you’re aiming for – will be a long haul; and because it’s gonna be
tough; and above all because <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">it’s worth
it</i>, and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">we want it</i>, we need to
plan carefully and think about the three stages of the journey to get success
on our side. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Before (you set out). </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">During (the journey to reach it). </span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;">After (you’ve reached it).</span> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRYiInjdcKlvaXogbgf0J-MvenOEStl6BFj4GlbKzZxtW0hh01Ai74IU-_T1_jH6M83I4kBKPgYE56IogXCp7t9men72i1xZJs28eDk1gCrbBVuhdNqsBR6IlYHaeLQY_tjn2iMTGq0n8F/s1600/Tom+Gamble_mauritania.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRYiInjdcKlvaXogbgf0J-MvenOEStl6BFj4GlbKzZxtW0hh01Ai74IU-_T1_jH6M83I4kBKPgYE56IogXCp7t9men72i1xZJs28eDk1gCrbBVuhdNqsBR6IlYHaeLQY_tjn2iMTGq0n8F/s1600/Tom+Gamble_mauritania.jpg" height="134" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Resources: this was hot</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglLU1EaDHNnLFw-rV4t6OnXOj0ApllYjxXiomvlpesDRvxMYsrGnH5llnGKWOTlA-nVxJR-Lyey_hJwFOR88N9zjFEZwgrql_eLsSnSkomBokcu78Kt7w4HRbiITNtVPMHQGBRgyKAdqRP/s1600/Tom+gamble_blizzard+in+the+Vexin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglLU1EaDHNnLFw-rV4t6OnXOj0ApllYjxXiomvlpesDRvxMYsrGnH5llnGKWOTlA-nVxJR-Lyey_hJwFOR88N9zjFEZwgrql_eLsSnSkomBokcu78Kt7w4HRbiITNtVPMHQGBRgyKAdqRP/s1600/Tom+gamble_blizzard+in+the+Vexin.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Resources: this was cold</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #ffe599;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And resources of course can be very varied. We’re not
just talking about water supply and tinned sardines. Any great adventure, any
change – whether buying a new fitted kitchen or writing a blockbuster movie
script – needs emotional, as well as material and financial resources to see
you through.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Motivation, determination, stamina, hope, love, cheerfulness, a bounce-back
mindset and pure true grit are sometimes just as or even more important than
anything else. Try writing a book – and you’ll see! <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"></span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9Y7lpEpcVB208UCmBOpTi2ORlbZG-Izl2xgqSiuBVS5SvGH5cHa4rlDPZo8cl6VXjBdc7r2AOR7stTBAjgQHVj7Q8pH2zVxR6UMuXg24PchaLnFB0J6DMO6SMa5DYuQSmjW-_-su8KQK/s1600/Tom+Gamble_summer+in+the+Vexin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9Y7lpEpcVB208UCmBOpTi2ORlbZG-Izl2xgqSiuBVS5SvGH5cHa4rlDPZo8cl6VXjBdc7r2AOR7stTBAjgQHVj7Q8pH2zVxR6UMuXg24PchaLnFB0J6DMO6SMa5DYuQSmjW-_-su8KQK/s1600/Tom+Gamble_summer+in+the+Vexin.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Resources: and this was just perfect!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;">In the run up to Christmas we’ll cover the last two
steps, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ecosystem and Purpose</i> and
finally <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Step</i>. And as an extra
presie for the Xmas stocking, sock, slippers or whatever your culture lays at
the bottom of the bed for the morning, I’ll add in a few real life examples of
how the “Dream Machine” was successfully used. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;"><em>THINK RESOURCES!<o:p></o:p></em></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;">Take care, keep warm and especially keep on dreaming! </span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><strong><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Tom xxx</span></strong> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</o:p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZgC7SG_8sXx-THAvQIHyARtTeOriRSdO3HkNK9IWstdFVt8cuMaBa5_vao-xIVJqtBel_4J3k6Dlw72aFnbJ4VNcHSQYbU5R606oS_wgyHDf4zurXsh9w0mLS88jw4kHxL5vlUkL72eXH/s1600/Tom+Gamble_The+Dream+Machine_Step7b_Resources.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZgC7SG_8sXx-THAvQIHyARtTeOriRSdO3HkNK9IWstdFVt8cuMaBa5_vao-xIVJqtBel_4J3k6Dlw72aFnbJ4VNcHSQYbU5R606oS_wgyHDf4zurXsh9w0mLS88jw4kHxL5vlUkL72eXH/s1600/Tom+Gamble_The+Dream+Machine_Step7b_Resources.PNG" height="244" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Click to enlarge, then click right to download</span></td></tr>
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Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-37025800898618124862014-12-01T22:05:00.002+01:002014-12-01T22:08:11.950+01:0036 Exposures and the harvesters we might just see<br />
<h2 class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">36 Exposures<o:p></o:p></span></span></h2>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQSFnBtOnZ31LjY704lgjAmTHtCQnQk2OPbOXXUFH5FtDgomJg5WpDjfkCdB36pTYByIahFWv07Pzotbbqz2Jtfco87n0u4XiNAMFfcD2QHIcd19FVTFMZ0rAjHUY5yXQPds5zzS2eTtxY/s1600/Tom+Gamble2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQSFnBtOnZ31LjY704lgjAmTHtCQnQk2OPbOXXUFH5FtDgomJg5WpDjfkCdB36pTYByIahFWv07Pzotbbqz2Jtfco87n0u4XiNAMFfcD2QHIcd19FVTFMZ0rAjHUY5yXQPds5zzS2eTtxY/s1600/Tom+Gamble2.JPG" height="200" width="132" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">Let’s face it – a plug for 36 Exposures! A collection of poems, ditties
and observations that, according to reviewer Paul Raine, editor of Poetic
Review, “pick you up and slam you down with just as much enthusiasm”. The
perfect companion for the bus or train ride into the smoke or the sticks – or a stolen
five minutes on any occasion for a verse chosen by you. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">Have a cuppa, turn on the speakers and chill out for 2 minutes and 7 seconds with the </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZp2cjJPaLY" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #ffe599;">promo video</span></strong></a><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"> for </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZp2cjJPaLY" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #ffe599;">36 Exposures</span></strong></a><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">: </span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">Here’s one of the more idiosyncratic ditties. Ever been stuck in a traffic
jam only to notice...<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the harvesters</i>?</span> </span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span> </span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #ffd966;">The Harvesters</span></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-style: normal; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another jammed day in mid-September</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-style: normal; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">And cars like files of blinded soldiers<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Head rain-drenched to the fate of the
ring-road:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Babel of radio jingles and voices<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Sledge-hammer rhythms and synthesised noises<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Parps, peeps, blubbers and squeaks<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jettisoned fag-butts, not enough sleep <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">This great and tragic push to work<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The pressed mess.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"></span></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">But there is hope:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For among the road louts, the rain brings out
the harvesters<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The lost and methodical day-dreamers<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The nose-pickers who through frosted windows<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Pick, pick, study, observe then flick<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Oblivious, occupied, industrious<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Somehow happy <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Strangely free.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></span></span> </div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Tom-Gamble/e/B005YHHGUG" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><span style="color: #ffd966;">Tom Gamble, 36 Exposures<o:p></o:p></span></span></a></span></h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicGMpRFSi_XUUvv9-OV-m9_0OPV37Rt-quP4kSDeaTgyT8GFaAI7npdc_7jDyy-JDqtdtP7y-AgDcjF18K1STJ1mi0T9-jDzPQiOZj7gzxCZcEoglPIs58pSwB4gzw4zzG_XWjZUrQuBXL/s1600/Tom+Gamble9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicGMpRFSi_XUUvv9-OV-m9_0OPV37Rt-quP4kSDeaTgyT8GFaAI7npdc_7jDyy-JDqtdtP7y-AgDcjF18K1STJ1mi0T9-jDzPQiOZj7gzxCZcEoglPIs58pSwB4gzw4zzG_XWjZUrQuBXL/s1600/Tom+Gamble9.jpg" height="320" width="231" /></a></div>
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Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-81144909238633627022014-11-29T20:36:00.000+01:002014-11-29T20:49:06.300+01:00You'll lose, you'll win - and why not buy a sandwich while you're at it?<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #76a5af;">The Dream Machine – the 6th of 9 steps in reaching your dream!</span> </span></h2>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span> </h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Welcome to Step 6 in the “dream machine”! If you’re
new to the blog and you wish to follow a cool and effective coaching tool used
to identify, check, plan and reach your dream, then please scroll down or
search the blog to begin with Step 1. This will tell you what a dream is all
about. Follow through Steps1-5 to come to today’s session:</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><strong><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Step 6: Losses & Gains (and things…)</span></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgodRZ0M00wMhljZzp2dIIXIlMFaXFC_eadgNlw4SqheHOE8gVAw_inlp2V1y-7WZGZDsdCxUTCz-V7DxVpBZkZG1mVNzxd3TojPOEtQl7g4ocYCNm3FQ6OuSURbGmMeNwYoXmLk664U01R/s1600/Step+6_Tom+Gamble+author+blog.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgodRZ0M00wMhljZzp2dIIXIlMFaXFC_eadgNlw4SqheHOE8gVAw_inlp2V1y-7WZGZDsdCxUTCz-V7DxVpBZkZG1mVNzxd3TojPOEtQl7g4ocYCNm3FQ6OuSURbGmMeNwYoXmLk664U01R/s1600/Step+6_Tom+Gamble+author+blog.PNG" height="235" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Click to enlarge, click right to download</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Maybe it’s worth kicking off with a brief discussion
on change. Because if you are decided on aiming to reach a dream – be it write
a book, move house, get married, start a new job, or expatriate to the country
you’ve always dreamt of living and working in – then it's very much a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">change scenario. </i><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In effect, you’re changing an old world for a new. And
with it comes all sorts of things like dealing with emotions, accepting
certain things, trusting your motivations, evaporating comfort zones and…losses
and gains! <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">When we’re young (in age, not so much in heart), we
don’t think, and we don’t even care much about losses. In fact, the question
hardly ever arises. We head for studies or first jobs, fall in love, move into
flats, join the army or volunteer for NGOs. And we just do it. And measure things up as we go.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Things get a little trickier if a) you’re a little
older and you have more things to lose (comfort, situation, habits, assets,
etc.) and b) if you were born into a culture (national or otherwise) that looks
at risk and initiative as something to be afraid of (my living example, France,
which has for centuries now set up layers and layers of mechanisms to reduce
risk in everything from education, to personal enterprise, to buying a sandwich.
This said, it does have its benefits. And there are in fact a few super French
people who actually defy the general “can’t be bothered / too many problems”
attitude and do actually do something). </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">With this in mind, Step 6 aims at giving both sides to
the coin a reasonable say – so that you can objectively assess your dream and
make the best decision.</span> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Kingdom-Emptiness-Tom-Gamble/dp/1908238364" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img alt="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Kingdom-Emptiness-Tom-Gamble/dp/1908238364" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvK4gMw0-AA14_qMjg3U8mGowdr1HBFRkWm3YBS3nEtPP2GyjLyVyzBLdZuquG7-bxwNH9I2rc68EwZf7wf6pylnFhZXRr3JAZxSE0EHgdJKk0vCP4fnZEyfPlQhes5ZN6XjUWo8GWQaoM/s1600/The+Kingdom+of+Emptiness_Tom+Gamble.jpg" height="200" width="125" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">All about losses, gains<br /> and finding a dream</span> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">When we change, we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will</i>
lose things – friends, comfort zone, habits, etc. Now that’s clear, it’s worth
mentioning that when we change we <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will</i>
gain things too! But what’s interesting is that changing a life or world doesn’t
mean burning every bridge in town as you go! No – in fact, it might be a good
idea to actually see what good things of the present we can take with us into
the future.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZG8YUaxq03ZPvBIfkcX4Ll-aCggiJnUa8fs0raItDYlwzGL_m0rGW_Y2ZUu4BQOWbch7gXGXfs9VlTJorQUuP4mAuhUM1KwiM8pSxPI1hz6eNt4kWqdH9RVkmMsY7mqBoti7PSUrR-ZV/s1600/Step6_Analysis_Tom+Gamble+author+blog.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZG8YUaxq03ZPvBIfkcX4Ll-aCggiJnUa8fs0raItDYlwzGL_m0rGW_Y2ZUu4BQOWbch7gXGXfs9VlTJorQUuP4mAuhUM1KwiM8pSxPI1hz6eNt4kWqdH9RVkmMsY7mqBoti7PSUrR-ZV/s1600/Step6_Analysis_Tom+Gamble+author+blog.PNG" height="237" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-size: xx-small;">Click to enlarge, click right to download</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">So follow Step 6 and enjoy. Needless to say, note
everything and put it with your other notes from Steps 1-5. With three more
left to go, we’ll be finished in beauty for Christmas. Looking forward to
seeing you soon for Step 7: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Resources</i>.
And talking of resources, I think I’ll just nip out, at my risk and</span> <span style="color: #b6d7a8;">peril… for
a sandwich.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: orange;">Bye for now.</span> </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffe599;">Tom ;-)</span> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br />
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</span><br />
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span> </span></div>
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span><o:p></o:p><br />Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-21662723509207573852014-11-22T12:36:00.000+01:002014-11-23T00:03:48.351+01:00Step 5 - From vertical to horizontal...<h2>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffd966;">The Dream Machine – 9 steps to reach your dream!</span> </span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Wow – busy week! And we’ve already come to Step 5! If
you’re new to the dream machine, then welcome on board. Scroll down or search the
blog to begin with Step 1. This will tell you what a dream is all about. Follow
through 1-4 to now complete today’s nugget: </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><strong><span style="color: white;">Step 5: Contextualise the dream</span></strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">So far, you’ve</span>:</span> </span><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Identified your dream and made a “film” of it / </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Considered how to start the ball rolling / </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Determined your motivations / </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Considered others’ wants and needs as well as your
own.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: white;">And now, so obvious and almost always forgotten…the
question of your travelling companions (or not) and the all-important issue of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">timing</b>!</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgukF267MLqusgrtDnJuUqVXO2bP3WZdfHX9lZ45ezcCEhzPk9s94_TI4CivaT1gEnYWCmrfJ6yZ2FqzHPhPbKSBiIPSwNInvxRRm5wVa8QSm75lQZiSLbEeHe8ycaybws5doykFWqoj6KT/s1600/Step5_Overview_Tom+Gamble.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgukF267MLqusgrtDnJuUqVXO2bP3WZdfHX9lZ45ezcCEhzPk9s94_TI4CivaT1gEnYWCmrfJ6yZ2FqzHPhPbKSBiIPSwNInvxRRm5wVa8QSm75lQZiSLbEeHe8ycaybws5doykFWqoj6KT/s1600/Step5_Overview_Tom+Gamble.PNG" height="146" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Click to enlarge, then click<br /> right to download</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">On that subject, stepping back and looking at life in
the early 21<sup>st</sup> century (free copy of the novel <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Kingdom of Emptiness</i> for the first person to find the reference
to that on the web – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ah-ha</i>…), I notice
a major behavioural trait: in this faster than-the-speed-of-light world of communication,
there are many of us who have a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">vertical
vision</span></b> rather than a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">horizontal vision</span></b>
of things. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Let me explain before you start phoning up the optician’s
(or psychologist!). By vertical I mean that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">we tend to make lists of things</span></b> – at home, at play, and especially at
work. Monday begins by what you didn’t finish off the previous week and before
you know it, ten other things have been added to your list. Head bowed, tucking
into the wind, you pedal on furiously down the list and just as fast as you
tick off the things you’ve completed, even more things replace it. Your sight
is vertical – fixed downwards on your list of tasks. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">We make everything a priority</span></b>.</span> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Whereas, I think the trick is to raise your eyes
and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">look horizontally</span></b> for once. Yep –
look out over yonder, across to the horizon, and time seems suddenly more like
a friend than a foe. You realise that, by pencilling in finishing off the Excel
spreadsheet for Thursday and not today (Tuesday), it won’t really make that
much difference – and certainly won’t bring on a cataclysm on a galactic scale.
If you’re worried about pressure from others – check it with them.</span> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Y9WvwUtjy_UV7Bvqow-5Al8wESaJDj42iW8LhJVbEKvQol9q6zRTWvvd9fr1_yJB1S2Qpj7gqFo_BUcYasaoF7rQTB0kcNN8Skh81Ginu_2Jggjd7CM-2Y9SyAocoAeswB-lgJYLAdMf/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Charles+Dickens.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Y9WvwUtjy_UV7Bvqow-5Al8wESaJDj42iW8LhJVbEKvQol9q6zRTWvvd9fr1_yJB1S2Qpj7gqFo_BUcYasaoF7rQTB0kcNN8Skh81Ginu_2Jggjd7CM-2Y9SyAocoAeswB-lgJYLAdMf/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Charles+Dickens.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffd966; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">What the Dickens is that horizontal look in<br /> his eye? Cheers Chris!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">In short, whoever pulled the old adage “don’t put off
today what you can do tomorrow” out of his/her hat obviously didn’t live with
computers, e-mail, herds of screaming kids, Saturday morning supermarkets and
the industrial, not to mention the internet, revolution. Claptrap indeed! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">DO put off until tomorrow what isn’t
required today</span></b>. Like that, you’ll stay sane and in good health as well as
being effective! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">Think horizontal!</span></b> </span></span>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"></span> </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">And finally, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: white;">some things just aren’t meant to happen at certain times</span></b>. Our civilisation
may try to reduce risk and chance to a max, but it still exists and always will
do. And that’s good. It keeps us hoping and striving for things. So even if you’ve
written the greatest story since <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Great
Expectations</i> and still haven’t been spotted by a publisher, or invented the
blueprint for a revolutionary micro-wave quick-freeze machine and can’t find a
backer – it will happen. Sometime. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"></span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span><span style="color: white;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So consider Step 5 below</span></b></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">. And keep all your notes together. When you’ve
reached the last step they’ll make interesting and highly motivating reading as
you steadily walk towards reaching your dream.</span> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtMzvS2El05ive1f68c6wxw7NQVAYTHswt2gxqPpkW-6_Zj9ntBt7xMSOXW6Q9lrQWVLnbQkVpAbG_9soDu0e_n36fVEiyXdIBNtYRA9DT9YgsNzsbJujJ8xnjoGOgcd_xcBq9-T7jiGge/s1600/Tom+Gamble+and+the+dream+machine_Step+5.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtMzvS2El05ive1f68c6wxw7NQVAYTHswt2gxqPpkW-6_Zj9ntBt7xMSOXW6Q9lrQWVLnbQkVpAbG_9soDu0e_n36fVEiyXdIBNtYRA9DT9YgsNzsbJujJ8xnjoGOgcd_xcBq9-T7jiGge/s1600/Tom+Gamble+and+the+dream+machine_Step+5.PNG" height="147" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-size: xx-small;">Click to enlarge, then click<br /> right to download</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"></span><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Meet up next weekend (barring mini-posts during the
week) for Step 6 and some eye-opening discussion about losses and gains, pain
and no pain (or something like that).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Tom ;-)</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><o:p></o:p></span> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
</span></span></span><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">
</span><div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></span> </span><br />
</div>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-32424972095596177282014-11-16T17:07:00.001+01:002014-11-16T17:08:27.480+01:00Step 4 in identifying, analysing, checking, planning and reaching what you've always wanted...<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-size: large;">The Dream Machine – 9 steps to reach
your dream!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: orange;">If you’re
new to the dream machine, then welcome! Scroll down or search the blog to begin
with Step 1 posted 3 weeks ago. This will tell you what a dream is all about.
For the rest of us, as promised, here’s… Step 4!</span> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Step 4: What
about the others?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">So you’ve got the dream, you
have the motivation, you’ve begun to plan the journey to reach it. Great! Now it’s
time to take a step back, have a cup of tea (or a pint of Banks’s bitter), and
maybe think about those around you. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUW6sxBLjHcrV7F7rwc0iGNDYAFL4PNtp_lRk3SFjOynrwzURhRTSZdcGpvXQ_Xjdg8YAYO661W8u26ecjNY_ldEZ0Z_ObBqR_6LUOtjMvH5tMwYpvq9QLJeUsReIfIUg8Q0tvDOAtIBRj/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Step4_1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUW6sxBLjHcrV7F7rwc0iGNDYAFL4PNtp_lRk3SFjOynrwzURhRTSZdcGpvXQ_Xjdg8YAYO661W8u26ecjNY_ldEZ0Z_ObBqR_6LUOtjMvH5tMwYpvq9QLJeUsReIfIUg8Q0tvDOAtIBRj/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Step4_1.JPG" height="237" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Click to enlarge, then click right to download</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I once started out hell for
leather for a couple of dreams and before I knew it, I’d caused havoc to quite a
few people in my entourage, including loved ones. Sometimes our enthusiasm gets
the better of us – a cavalry charge when it should be a trot (at least in the
early stages) and at the most a canter. It can make you feel quite a twit, and
certainly quite guilty. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s worth thinking about them
– the others. And by answering the questions to Step 4, you might even find
support and partners to join forces with to add value and strength to your
efforts. What’s more, you’ll have avoided making enemies by taking into account
people’s needs, reassuring them and, if need be, aiming for a win-win without
letting go of your dream. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Remember. Life can be both
weird and wonderful. Old flames, school bullies, rotten bosses, old mates and
those you upset – they always have a habit of cropping up months, years, or thousands
of miles later. You’ll meet them, against all odds, in a bus in Prague or
behind a sand dune in the Sahara. Unfinished business, maybe. And best not to
have given them reason for a grudge in the past. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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</span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Keep on dreaming. Above all,
keep a note of everything you’ve written down during the first 4 steps. This is
your battle plan: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inspiring, daring,
ambitious</i> – and also <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">carefully checked
and planned</i>! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: orange;">Rendez-vous next weekend! Step
5 will cover the issue of getting the timing right.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: orange;">Best, Tom xxx</span> </span><span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Click to enlarge, then click right to download</span></td></tr>
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Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-71510122547474112262014-11-15T11:29:00.000+01:002014-11-15T11:51:24.197+01:00<br />
<h2>
<span style="color: cyan; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Add a little Soul to your Life!</span> </h2>
<span style="color: yellow; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Capricious valentine, you're mine</span><br />
<span style="color: yellow; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ginger kiss that I would miss</span><br />
<span style="color: yellow; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, I say</span><br />
<span style="color: yellow; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Your sweet and sour smile</span><br />
<span style="color: yellow; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is a game I love to play"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">What Tom does after midnight - when he's not scribbling!</span> <span style="color: cyan;">;-) </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: cyan;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/0FFn2kJdWq8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpz-a_ZsmSw&list=PLMX-0uI6qjMJHiPM2Kygrgo1PIuzV75U3" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><strong>Empty Roads & Days of Gold</strong>: The Moodfield's home-brewed album on YouTube</span></a></div>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-64331230130365424902014-11-08T13:34:00.000+01:002014-11-08T13:48:56.989+01:00Another step forwards in reaching your dream!. By Tom Gamble<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Dream Machine – 9 steps to reach
your dream!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #ffd966;">Step 3 –
you start to plan the journey…<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Hi
there. Glad to see you back and happy to welcome any newcomers too! The past
two weeks have seen 2 Steps discovered in how to reach your dream, goal, or
objective (remember, “dream” is much more inspiring and motivating a word to
use). See previous posts to review or discover Steps 1 and 2: positively
stating your dream, and checking it feels just right by making ‘a film’ of it
in your mind.</span> </span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2ssOQERmRn89cGEPeazWgh9CnJ_T1YTDE0TFB2WzeWCzh2JopkKA6TVisy5haWptirb2Nj8Q2zZYYx-TCtZThoQHaY9AFhFztYYwmCL2_dsai7IOpPQjHnVlk55_9E8Sta_UY3okRQQss/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Dream_Step3_Overview.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2ssOQERmRn89cGEPeazWgh9CnJ_T1YTDE0TFB2WzeWCzh2JopkKA6TVisy5haWptirb2Nj8Q2zZYYx-TCtZThoQHaY9AFhFztYYwmCL2_dsai7IOpPQjHnVlk55_9E8Sta_UY3okRQQss/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Dream_Step3_Overview.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And now the journey really begins!</span> </span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Step 3 walks you through
generating the motivations that will help you start and maintain the effort to
reach your dream despite any factor that might just try to prevent you from
doing that. If you do succeed in this step, then great – keep on going and
watch out for the next step coming soon. If not, then that’s positive too, because
it shows you that the dream/objective isn’t entirely aligned with what you
really want and what really makes you tick. That’s precious news – imagine going
down a path that would only get you completely lost. Fun for a while, but if
you’ve tried this in a forest or a desert, then it quickly becomes a scary, exhausting
and even dangerous experience (I have – and once found myself blundering about
a blackened forest only to come up snout-to-snout with a horde of wild boar.
Believe me – the noise they make in the night is enough to set the old self-control
racing dangerously into the red).</span> <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">So, read wisely and be
satisfied with the outcome of this 3<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">rd</span></sup> Step. To paraphrase Paulo Coelho
from that marvellous book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Alchemist</i>:
A decision to do something is not the end of a dream – it is only the beginning.</span>
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Click to enlarge, then click right to download</span></td></tr>
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><o:p></o:p></span></span> </div>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-89188583976270902542014-11-07T23:06:00.001+01:002014-11-07T23:14:03.095+01:00<br />
<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiCKuE1g4L5g5SOeoof2r43w14d_ora5bV0IHGqkfA0VX71RB0F7cKDyAZszEdpZg0WserVWj_xP4n0xKQ3TXjEedLxRt2JIwO3XqDetKZ_yMMH-mvxcZs3lzLH2LgaxupGEKZXHetum_b/s1600/Lucia+Ortie+R..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiCKuE1g4L5g5SOeoof2r43w14d_ora5bV0IHGqkfA0VX71RB0F7cKDyAZszEdpZg0WserVWj_xP4n0xKQ3TXjEedLxRt2JIwO3XqDetKZ_yMMH-mvxcZs3lzLH2LgaxupGEKZXHetum_b/s1600/Lucia+Ortie+R..jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucia Ortiz R.</td></tr>
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<h2>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">Lucia Ortiz R. -Writer</span></h2>
<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 18.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Mexican, an adventurer, traveller, teacher, archaeologist and young
woman of letters but to name a few. I would say she has that special thing that
sets people apart - a blend of curiosity that leads her to explore everything
that life can offer, an open mind, boundless energy, and finally courage to keep her
company on all the paths she takes. What's more - she writes!</span> </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="color: #ffd966;">
</span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></span><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 18.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I’ve
great pleasure in posting some of Lucia's poetic prose. Simple, lovely, and
very true. Enjoy.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></h3>
<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">So this is my discovery...</span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;"> </span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Let me tell you about it. When I saw it for the first
time.</span> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">It was as though I’d found something insignificant, a
graceless object, without shine, without colour. But some time after having
held it in my hands and offering it a place in me, my vision of it changed. In
this place the object shone differently – I do not know if it was the light
that entered through the window at that moment or the objects that surrounded
it, but its attractiveness was obviously a call for me to observe attentively.
So I began. My mind was full of questions without answers: how had it been
shaped? Where did it come from? What was its story? Surprised, I smiled before
this object. Because each minute I spent in contact with it, I noticed that its
image pointed leftwards and away – as if it did not, and had never wanted to,
show its face. It was clear that it was hiding something…</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">As time passed, I was able to look at the traces etched
into its rough body. Like scars showing everything it had been through, what it
had fought against not to be trawled until lifelessness. Really, I believe it
had struggled greatly not to be distanced from its life, its natural home. But
destiny had decided that it was the moment to part.</span> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Today, when I came into my room and looked at its
other side, I understood it was a lesson in life, a very precious treasure. Not
only a piece for study, but art, a sculpture which held its memories, had its
roots, a lineage, a past, a history.</span> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Later, after long appraisal, I put it to my ear. Both
contact and harmony were perfect because it gave me great peace. So I closed my
eyes and almost mystical, I could hear the place it had the nostalgia to return
to. It was then that I understood that after death, the mind remains intact as
memories and experiences lived, until they return to the place where they were
born. And this was how I discovered the origin of a shell, a body, capable of
transmitting the sounds our senses receive – always sent by the echo of either
a snail, the ear or the heart – and that they are one and the same; each
with a different name, for us to understand in that a difference.</span> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span lang="ES-MX" style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Lucía
Ortíz R.</span> </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-31713066543636480382014-11-01T11:46:00.000+01:002014-11-01T12:03:19.285+01:00<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-size: x-large;">The Dream machine – 9 steps to reach your dream!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></h2>
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #ffd966; font-size: large;">Step 2</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last week we triggered the dream machine with Step 1: identifying
the dream and positively declaring what you want. And now (drum roll and cymbal
splash):</span> </span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgonvSGA8SRyo_SJDYXiCVeWoKDVVrX89u3woAKX287b4vjjm1ETejDxVTsvpe-M97ixOj5dOruJ6JVRVueRgU3MHbaL5dhCCU0uZ0cWR-HkKQmo_gl5NCKnAJkH5DQk6MVWMYb6BOM20rZ/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Step+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgonvSGA8SRyo_SJDYXiCVeWoKDVVrX89u3woAKX287b4vjjm1ETejDxVTsvpe-M97ixOj5dOruJ6JVRVueRgU3MHbaL5dhCCU0uZ0cWR-HkKQmo_gl5NCKnAJkH5DQk6MVWMYb6BOM20rZ/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Step+2.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Focus on Step 2: click to enlarge and download</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"><strong><span style="color: #ffe599;">STEP 2:</span></strong> Things begin to become interesting…</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">Time to make a film of your dream. Martin Luther King
did (“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia…”), Ghandi did,
and so did Sir David Lean and David Spielberg – literally! </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So simply follow Step 2 and have fun!</span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cfe2f3;">Keep on dreaming. And next week we’ll continue with
Step 3 so that <em>your</em> dream becomes <em>your</em> reality! Piece o’ cake.</span> </span></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbSjpN92SIleI9b9R1dhlBNOMzRX1cm2yC6oUZ7jv0usTVbGcAwqmF4qWXQz_1Qv9WLJejOKaKbBGVHW9_z2NTZJ7l2eYHZhlvZ9Nrc7iLUGovBfUSqLhSqiNVcGK3XxQuzU1as4siyYk/s1600/Tom+Gamble+36+Exposures.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbSjpN92SIleI9b9R1dhlBNOMzRX1cm2yC6oUZ7jv0usTVbGcAwqmF4qWXQz_1Qv9WLJejOKaKbBGVHW9_z2NTZJ7l2eYHZhlvZ9Nrc7iLUGovBfUSqLhSqiNVcGK3XxQuzU1as4siyYk/s1600/Tom+Gamble+36+Exposures.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">STEP 2 INSTRUCTIONS: click to enlarge and download</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"> Tom ;-) xx</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><span style="color: #ffe599;"></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><span style="color: #ffe599;"> PS:</span> coming soon – a snippet of poetic<br /> prose from a clever
Mexican lady, and a<br /> visitor to the blog, who has a dream. And<br /> who dares to make
it happen. Watch this<br /> space…<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-84942314653001761762014-10-28T19:58:00.000+01:002014-10-28T19:58:13.218+01:00<br />
<span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">See, feel, and hear what The Kingdom of Emptiness is all about...</span><br />
<em><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: Trebuchet MS; font-size: x-small;">Sound on</span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS; font-size: x-small;"></span></em><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzmtiCxmCePpWKC2btF7nnaDpFVqXjQiTDDfV5FTC12CDTnpqwpM2C3ZN1D62JleIsGMASPrDCIDgXRGTVl4Q' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-9878350180216910102014-10-25T12:12:00.000+02:002014-10-25T13:31:02.382+02:00<br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">The Dream Machine – 9 steps to reach
your dream!</span> </span></h2>
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</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEoxvClcKVywl1HRIuNYMpt0y53NC5DaoRhZClbOQDLyaT1BApUH9JhYe7ZclPUUGev079wgRJXx_PeMCi5CEQz1NCUzKMdCeaYOCsn5UXoojAVFBNIeqMwOd7ItzD8mz3juvsut4_fCYF/s1600/Tom+Gamble+and+the+dream+machine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEoxvClcKVywl1HRIuNYMpt0y53NC5DaoRhZClbOQDLyaT1BApUH9JhYe7ZclPUUGev079wgRJXx_PeMCi5CEQz1NCUzKMdCeaYOCsn5UXoojAVFBNIeqMwOd7ItzD8mz3juvsut4_fCYF/s1600/Tom+Gamble+and+the+dream+machine.JPG" height="238" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Click to enlarge, then click right to save</span></td></tr>
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="color: #ffe599; font-size: large;">As promised, here it is: 1 step a week to achieve that
dream of yours.</span> </span></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: orange;">First, what is it?</span> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">It’s a 9-step tool – in the form of a chart/process –
to formulate, analyse, plan, check and reach your dream. </span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: orange;">Second, what’s a dream?</span> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: Calibri;">A “dream” can be a goal, an
objective, a desire, or even…a dream! I prefer to use the word dream, even in a
professional context, to cover all of these. It makes it more exciting. BUT,
look at these two examples: </span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">a)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oh
Lord, if only I were a millionaire, then I could do whatever I wanted…<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">b)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I
want to publish a book. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">The first is NOT a dream. It’s
a wishful thought, a “poor old me” statement, vague and not very concrete! A
millionaire through what? A miraculous rain storm with gold coins flooding down
instead of raindrops? A forgotten auntie who turns up at your door with a
treasure chest full of diamonds? A lottery ticket that – if we are to believe
the governments of this world – suddenly transforms you into a being richer than
Bill Gates with no effort required? <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The second IS A DREAM. And it
is concrete. And when you do publish a book, then it might even make you a
millionaire in the process! So dreams are realisable. And remember, what may
appear a dream to one, may be different for another. For example: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">
</span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Tom’s dream is to publish a
book. Sally’s dream is to go on a world tour. Pete’s dream is to meet the love
of his life. Charlotte’s dream is to live in New York. Raja’s dream is to spend
a holiday trekking in Mongolia. Jose’s dream is to own and run a philosophy café.
Hakim’s dream is to be a rock star. And Michaela’s dream is to ensure a
university education for her son and daughter. These are dreams: and they can
be reached.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: orange;">Third, the proof: </span></span></span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: Calibri;">A few years ago, something
happened to me – I lost my job. And with it, self-esteem, comfort, security,
pride, etc. I was in my 40s. And if you’re 45 and above in France, then the
chances of finding another job quickly (if ever, as unfortunately the case now
appears), are very slim indeed. I took a look back at the past, and a look
forward to the future: and decided the moment had come to reach my dreams. I
dug up something I’d come across while training as a coach, modified it
slightly, re-named it “the dream machine” and used it. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">So I wrote a book and started
my own business. A year later <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Amazir</i>
was published, without using an agent (almost unheard of), and it went to 2<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">nd</span></sup>
place in a national UK literary prize. And my little business, much like a
toddler, slowly learnt to walk and is now running despite the obstacles the
country I live in puts in its way. So here is your chance too. Because another
dream I have – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">à la MLK</i> – is for EVERYBODY
to reach their dream and – why not – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">taste
happiness!</i> So do it.</span> <span style="color: orange;"></span><br />
<span style="color: orange;"></span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;"><strong>Here's Step 1</strong></span> <span style="color: #f3f3f3;">- easy! You've a week to think about and do it before</span> <span style="color: orange;">St</span><span style="color: orange;">ep 2 next week.</span> <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">What d'you think?</span> <br />
<br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;">See Tom's second dream reached using the 9-step tool at </span><a href="http://www.tomgamble.org/"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><strong>www.tomgamble.org</strong></span></a><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgukthq8oXS1GLpL3awNedDQE0Eso9L9RxR28NZ2uMqXQ3tFrbBWJxK89qd2yIPbWvrdFuOaay2f-WSH_af0SLpttEReWPBRhskKPoujHz2s6RxVI58DE43kQ7dgou92whIdS8PHWt283AZ/s1600/Tom+Gamble+Step+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgukthq8oXS1GLpL3awNedDQE0Eso9L9RxR28NZ2uMqXQ3tFrbBWJxK89qd2yIPbWvrdFuOaay2f-WSH_af0SLpttEReWPBRhskKPoujHz2s6RxVI58DE43kQ7dgou92whIdS8PHWt283AZ/s1600/Tom+Gamble+Step+1.JPG" height="296" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Click on the image to download.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span> </span></span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-2443495462044975322014-10-20T23:03:00.000+02:002014-10-20T23:04:15.545+02:00
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">It would be nice to know you<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">Dear visitors to this BlogSpot,<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">It would be nice to know you – and that’s from the heart. You’re 3,757 to
visit this stop off on your internet journey – from France, the United States,
the Ukraine, the UK, Germany, Russia, China, Japan, Australia, Canada, India, Mexico,
Algeria and even Nepal. And other places too.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">I personally know some of you. And I think, in these very tough times,
it would be nice for you all to have a say too. Send me a word, drop me a line.
Make a comment. Speak to me of your hopes and dreams, work, family, sadness and
joy – and if you want, I’ll post you on the blog with a message to the world.
Send a mail to this address:</span> </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="mailto:tom.gamble@orange.fr"><span lang="EN-GB" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: white;">tom.gamble@orange.fr</span></span></a></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: white;">and I’ll get back in touch.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #ffd966;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="color: white;">So times are tough. It has been said. But they seem tougher now than ever.
Taking a step back and looking at the last 30 years or so, nothing much has
changed on certain fronts. Recession has been constant. Most of the same old
faces are still around, telling us what to do or promising us what they cannot keep.
We are taxed until life becomes more like survival than living. Wars are
fought. Extremes still sow panic. Systems stay absurdly the same. And England
still hasn’t reached the World Cup final (!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But there are beautiful moments too. And we must continue, must we not?
We must believe, hope, fall in love, gaze across the hillsides and walk by the
sea, start families, and follow dreams – for that’s what counts and what keeps
us afloat.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #ffd966;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="color: white;">Your visits to this blog certainly help me, that’s for sure. They give
me a hope that maybe I can offer something. That maybe you in turn will be able
to give through the work that you will endeavour. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
that maybe what I write can offer the world something too (by the way, a
percentage of everything I write goes to charities – see posts - so your
gesture of buying and reading my books helps both others and the world
progress. And if, by bad luck, you can’t find the means to buy, then a jolly
review on Amazon, a Like, Tweet, Star or any other weird and wonderful positive
gesture would help just as much!). So thanks for your visits, thanks for your effort,
however long or however brief!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #ffd966;">
</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5bG-u2HuGzfxm1WUMoggRIaMzaltlnOieDujEg8mox5SjGiuaMPFfae0nVuJwrCuCN01HeGYvl99C8CnJi3UD7GVK_je1v0mjD6yvMfOn6C5mkkOqG1zxVJPO8v6q0PDu2u2z7kCI_KT4/s1600/Tom+Gamble+teenager.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5bG-u2HuGzfxm1WUMoggRIaMzaltlnOieDujEg8mox5SjGiuaMPFfae0nVuJwrCuCN01HeGYvl99C8CnJi3UD7GVK_je1v0mjD6yvMfOn6C5mkkOqG1zxVJPO8v6q0PDu2u2z7kCI_KT4/s1600/Tom+Gamble+teenager.jpg" height="320" width="215" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">Talking of teens - I was a dreamer!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="color: white;">The new book of poetry –</span> <strong><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/36-Exposures-Poems-people-places-ebook/dp/B00OJD7R2I/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413838404&sr=1-2&keywords=36+Exposures" target="_blank"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">36 Exposures</span></a></strong> <span style="color: white;">– has just been published, with an
end-of-year aim to donate to Vibrance Care Homes UK. The novel published in
March,</span> <strong><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kingdom-Emptiness-Tom-Gamble-ebook/dp/B00IWYNMEW/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413838452&sr=1-1&keywords=the+kingdom+of+emptiness" target="_blank"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">The Kingdom of Emptiness</span></a></strong></span><span style="color: white;">, needs help and promotion – for it may well be
a story that changes the world for the better! And just for you, I’ve decided
to post something that I learnt a few years ago and that has helped me achieve
my own dreams. It’s a coaching tool: HOW TO REACH YOUR DREAM IN 9 STEPS. And
because I can’t technically upload the full thing in a document on this blog,
I’ll be doing it in steps – all 9 of them over the next 9 weeks. It works. For
me it did. And for those I’ve trained, coached and helped, it did. So you can
benefit from it too. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: white;">But before we begin (this coming weekend), it’s necessary to have…A
DREAM! So get thinking, get dreaming. Maybe you’ve already got one. If you
haven’t – and it’s very often the case – then go back to when you were a
teenager or even before. You remember – when your sleep and idle moments were
filled with dreams! And if you still can’t think of a dream that you want to
achieve, then ask yourself: “what if I woke up tomorrow? What would my perfect
life, my perfect world be like?” And there you’ll find your dream. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><span style="color: white;">Kisses to all. And raising a beer to you too. Hope to hear from you soon
and look out for the coming weekend and the first step in reaching your dream!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #ffd966;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;"><strong>Tom<o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></span></div>
Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-39435784414147258472014-10-15T23:12:00.000+02:002014-10-20T23:05:05.243+02:00<br />
<span style="color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">36 Exposures Goes Live</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwN4gF198MdC9nGLkD-TL7FONERR-Yq5JV93Iuk2W7NjK9Aymm5TMNEiez-ktgfLSSu7Xquo_mvrmWLX0XZ1dj6EBzeKeK8oU3QODj7bLXMce-PJWCdhN_EJ45aH3tonfm2utzfn1eHDy6/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Scribd..PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwN4gF198MdC9nGLkD-TL7FONERR-Yq5JV93Iuk2W7NjK9Aymm5TMNEiez-ktgfLSSu7Xquo_mvrmWLX0XZ1dj6EBzeKeK8oU3QODj7bLXMce-PJWCdhN_EJ45aH3tonfm2utzfn1eHDy6/s1600/Tom+Gamble_Scribd..PNG" height="148" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scribd. has place of honour to be the first outlet worldwide to feature Tom's collection of poetry - <em><a href="https://fr.scribd.com/book/243121375/36-Exposures-Poems-for-life-love-people-and-places" target="_blank"><span style="color: white;">36 Exposures</span></a></em>. Give </span><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://fr.scribd.com/book/243121375/36-Exposures-Poems-for-life-love-people-and-places" target="_blank"><span style="color: #ffd966;"><strong><span style="color: white;">Scribd</span>.</strong></span></a> a visit and remember: </span><br />
<span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: #cfe2f3; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A poem is a
page, if that. A stolen five minutes away from the crowd, the office, the
computer, the phone, the expectations and the obligations. It’s like a quick
and passionate kiss with a love – exciting, reassuring, rebellious and true. It
pierces the heart of the wider world but strangely is pointed directly at you. Enjoy.</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Tom xxx ;-)</span></strong> <o:p></o:p></span></span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-61121636421788443582014-10-15T15:55:00.001+02:002014-10-25T12:13:58.955+02:00Listen to the artist in you!<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: #ffe599; font-size: large;">The signs that something “arty” is
about to happen</span></strong> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Ever felt that second’s-worth of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oh</i>?
Ever had a moment of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ah</i>! And what
about that distant nagging sensation that lingers long after the idea you had
wasn’t written down? And do all these come back sometime further down the line?
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Most probably yes. And most probably a sure sign that there’s a
wordsmith, song-smith or even art-smith deep inside you, well frustrated that you
won’t listen to its call. And can you blame it?!</span> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXFfgpvv-KQzlid39VF63Ur-amiCHfXzKyaxLgPTklRHNWCehItneHOGgrDJBS2CnA_RbYM3Q8jllkYQ63tB3GEo1GkFpjqr6Xlw6AZ3pYinJQhkJxvWhBdxhW-qXsKc7fvbyncQr8FcXW/s1600/Tom+Gamble+author.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXFfgpvv-KQzlid39VF63Ur-amiCHfXzKyaxLgPTklRHNWCehItneHOGgrDJBS2CnA_RbYM3Q8jllkYQ63tB3GEo1GkFpjqr6Xlw6AZ3pYinJQhkJxvWhBdxhW-qXsKc7fvbyncQr8FcXW/s1600/Tom+Gamble+author.PNG" height="320" width="316" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">For many years I battled with these muses and their tweaks, signs,
messages and grumblings – and turned a deaf ear to them with an excuse to do
other, more pressing things like work, phoning a friend, filling in the tax
form, or most importantly dozing off in front of an England World Cup football
match. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">These last four years, I decided not to. And I heeded their call. That
made the muse – or muses – very happy. For there’s nothing worse in life than
considering yourself beautiful and not being looked at. And Muses <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> beautiful. Since then, notebook,
back-of-an-envelope, computer and even the mobile have seen scribbled down
thoughts and ideas the moment the muse awakens.</span> </span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Here are some of the signs: a checklist, if you like.</span>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">An “Oh”, an
“Ah!” or an “Ooh” when visiting somewhere different – something has triggered a
thought, emotion or memory deep inside you. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">
</span></span></span><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">A puzzled
feeling when settling down to sleep at night – something you can’t quite grasp <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(and I’m talking about the sign the muse gave
to you here, of course)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">As the
days pass, a restlessness. You often glance out of the window, fidget, catch
yourself frowning in the hallway mirror (Is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">that
</i>me??)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">After the restlessness,
hesitation and blunder. Here, you do things like pick up the toast before
putting butter on it, or worse pick up the toast with the left hand and the
butter with the right – all the time forgetting that a knife is needed in the
process. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You put on odd socks. You forget
your keys in the door, the grandmother you left guarding the supermarket trolley
by the special offer beer and wine shelf. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">The slow
spread of grumpiness in you turns to the irascible. You begin to throw insults
at the telly and the England squad wandering dreamily about the pitch (yes, I
know the sweltering heat is usually to blame, as well as the French referee). The
f-word is used unsparingly for minor mishaps. You get angry.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Finding no
positive way to express itself, the anger turns to the blues. You listen
long hours to Bumble Bee Slim records and consider taking up the harmonica. You
might decide to examine the clouds in the sky for long moments, generally bemoan
the state of the country and its cohorts of bureaucrats, and focus on every
dismal piece of news the media dishes out to you.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">You drop
it – the whole damn thing and especially that nagging voice in the back of your
mind which says “what a waste!”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">8.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">And it is
then – at that precise moment – that you should peddle backwards, seize a pen
and paper, and scribble for all you’re worth! YES – even if you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do</i> snub your nose at them, the Muses <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">always</i> offer you another chance to
capture what they’ve been trying to tell you! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">9.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">So the idea
is written. It takes shape and a song, story, work of art, and poem is born.
And <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gawd Blimey</i> – all of a sudden you
feel pleased with yourself, on top of the world, and life seems the most
wonderful thing. </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><strong>The lesson: Listen to the muse you have inside you – and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">always</i> have a pen and paper handy!</strong></span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #e69138;">Tom Gamble ;-)</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><br />
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p> </o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
<o:p></o:p></span></span>Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1625070396923479558.post-35450360774126448092014-10-13T08:58:00.000+02:002014-10-13T13:58:08.212+02:00<strong><span style="color: #ffd966; font-family: Trebuchet MS;"></span></strong><br />
<br />
<h2 class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #c27ba0;"><span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">36 Exposures – Go Live
imminent!</span> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></h2>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqSV2eUGA5JWG_3P2jZxfJDtLLWio8h9kh6R8d2oQHMlOx7oQ0-4NvLJGGOYhGMfYBzvrCrwvGFgHr9KxmieV_I-3fATsBPqLsR5w91N12Wk6M-6BYQxui3fHvQQ7lTBfbDPJ7j0dcME9n/s1600/Tom+Gamble8.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqSV2eUGA5JWG_3P2jZxfJDtLLWio8h9kh6R8d2oQHMlOx7oQ0-4NvLJGGOYhGMfYBzvrCrwvGFgHr9KxmieV_I-3fATsBPqLsR5w91N12Wk6M-6BYQxui3fHvQQ7lTBfbDPJ7j0dcME9n/s1600/Tom+Gamble8.png" height="200" width="140" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">The final stages of editing are coming to an end and it looks as if 36
Exposures – the collection of poems and dittologies – will indeed be on your
virtual shelves very soon! The collection is dedicated to Maurice Henry Gamble
and a percentage of all sales of 36 Exposures will be donated to </span><a href="http://www.vibrance.org.uk/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="color: #f1c232;">Vibrance Care Homes</span></strong></a><span style="color: #6fa8dc;"> UK where Maurice spent many years of his life, helped by the wonderfully
dedicated and caring staff who work there (thanks goes out to Marilyn for a beautiful account of Maurice's life at the home) .</span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="color: #ffd966; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong>A pre-launch snippet from 36 Exposures:</strong></span> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 18pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: white;">Serendip<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When you come, usually brusque in
step</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">With a smile and the way you have
of stooping slightly</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Forwards through the finishing
tape to the future,</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So the magic begins.</span><br />
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</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It startles me – these sudden
magpies and their ritual dance,</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The unexpected opening of doors
and sunshine just on us.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And why should everything reveal
an interest,</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The mundane uncover such wild and
wonder?</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="color: white;"> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It is the beginning, I know – but
it still enchants.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We have not touched, just talked.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And yes, you old, ageless
conspiracy – </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: white; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">You’ve hooked us on a lovely
spell.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="color: #666666;"> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #ffd966; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><strong>Copyright 2014 Tom Gamble</strong></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<br />Tom Gamblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877261893188739149noreply@blogger.com0