Author name: Sayling@@Away

It’s been a while since I, Garfield the Magnificent, have regaled you from my two-legged’s blog. But it’s about time. She’s been in the hospital lately, and while I’ve missed her, it gives me an opportunity at the computer. The biggest change in the household, and indeed in my existence, is the arrival of another cat. That’s right, another cat. And not just any cat. A small female Manx, which I’m told has tiger stripes and a very, very short tail, so she fits the bill. Her name is Samantha. Samantha has been challenging to say the least. Since I outweigh her four times, I’ve been able to exert myself in certain areas, but over time there’s been Samantha creep. She used to stay in the other bedroom, but now she shares Mister and Missus’s bed with me. At least she has the good sense to stay at the bottom of the bed. One day she even took to sitting on the top of my cat tree, for all the world to see, but only that once. She has a cat tree of her own in the other bedroom. But I got even. I went and jammed myself into the house on her cat tree. Samantha is very finicky about water. She likes to sit in the bathroom sink and drink from the faucet, and she demands fresh water in our bowls every day. She is also a stranger eater. She likes dry food and will swill down a few spoonfuls of our favorite tuna with seaweed, but she leaves what’s left to me and eats my dry food. Samantha likes turkey and chicken, which I won’t eat. And she likes to be brushed – with my brush! The worst of it is, when I challenge her, which I have to do a couple of time a day to make sure she knows her place, she fights back, hissing and swiping. Then we chase each other from one end of the house to the other. I’ve never had so much exercise! Occasionally she will rub up against me, but I know it’s just a ploy. And I’ve given her head a lick or two, but just in preparation for a challenge. Missus told me Samantha had a rough life. She was captured as a stray, but not wild, somewhere far away in the state. She was pregnant, but no one knows what happened to her babies. Then she was shuttled here and there until she came here. Maybe her time living outside is why she likes to drink water from the faucet and picks up water with her paw to drink. Samantha told me she really wants to go outside. She’s escaped on her own twice, when she slipped out the front door while Missus was talking to a neighbor, but she only ran around the house and came when Missus went to get her. Once, Mister left the patio door propped open with a shoe. Samantha went out on the patio and persuaded me to go with her. I’ve never been outside. I didn’t like it much, especially when Missus screamed at me to get back inside and went after Samantha. I think Missus got Samantha a harness, which she might use to take her outside when the heat is no longer melting the sidewalk. So that’s what’s new in my kingdom. I’m not sure Samantha will ever be a loyal subject. Until then, I’m just going to relax. 2 0

I’m over the moon to tell lmy followers that Sally Cronin, benefactor of writers extraordinaire and a fine writer herself, promoted my new book, , on her website today’ Lots of wonderful comments that just made my day! Check it out! 0 0

In the late eighteenth century, with England seemingly beset on all sides, the War Office needs agents to spy for them and James Burke is a perfect choice: half-gentleman, half-soldier, and well-suited to the job of spying. As a spy, Burke has been to the Iberian Peninsula, to Egypt, to Paris, after Napoleon is exiled to Elba and Ireland. The book about this latter adventure I have reviewed previously. England needs spies everywhere, and Burke is the perfect chameleon. My knowledge of the War of 1812 is limited and I enjoyed the fact that this book focused narrowly on what predated the war, taking place in Canada. Burke has been summoned back to London from Portugal by General Gordon of the Horse Guards. Gordon is fearful of the growth and expansion of America and that the country will try to annex Canada next. He sees a way to gain an advantage in an inevitable war between England and America by arming and supporting the Indians of the First Nations, who are already antagonistic to Americans because of the loss of their lands to settlers. Sergeant William Brown, whom Burke knows well, will accompany him. His journey takes him to the heart of the Canadian wilderness and the tribal home of the Shawnee people, where he expects to find Tecumseh, who is trying to unite the different tribes to confront the Americans. He is taken on a long journey to a meeting with Tecumseh, while Brown stays behind, assimilating into the Shawnee culture and trying to train them to face an American sortie determined to wipe them out. Surrounded by a treacherous political landscape, Burke’s journey eventually takes him to Washington and then back to open conflict along the Canada-US border. There he has to make a decision about whether he in fact wants to be a soldier in the King’s Army or return to his life as a spy. The journey, the Shawnee culture, the surroundings, and the military confrontation are all written in meticulous and accurate detail. This book is full of tension and historically fascinating, and the descriptions of Burke’s journey and the characters that populate it are colorful and real –a  book about a war that I doubt few people know much about.I recommend it strongly to aficionados of historical novels and of American and Canadian history in particular.  About the Author: Tom Williams used to write books for business. Now he writes novels set in the 19th century that are generally described as fiction but which are often more honest than the business books. (He writes contemporary fantasy as well, but that’s a dark part of his life, so you’ll have to explore that on your own – ideally with a friend and a protective amulet.) His stories about James Burke are exciting tales of high adventure and low cunning set around the Napoleonic Wars. The stories have given him the excuse to travel to Argentina, Egypt, and Spain and call it research. Tom lives in London. His main interest is avoiding doing any honest work and this leaves him with time to ski, skate, and dance tango, all of which (before covid) he thought he did quite well. In between, he reads old books and spends far too much time looking at ancient weaponry.You can find Tom Williams On twitter @TomCW99 On his website: https://tomwilliamsauthor.co.uk Or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorTomWilliams 0 0

It’s finally here, the long-delayed release of my latest book. I am delighted that it is finally available to all! Blurb: When the two Corey children are orphaned in an Indian attack on the frontier of Kentucky, Daniel Boone tracks their escape through the woods and brings them to his home in Fort Boonesborough. There they will live with him, his wife Rebecca, and their eight children in their crowded cabin, where she and her brother Thatch learn much about Colonel Boone and why he is regarded as one of the greatest frontier explorers and hunters. Eliza is soon immersed in the hard life of a frontier woman – doing the many household chores, working gardens and crops, foraging for food in the woods, and hunting. After surviving a pivotal historic event in the Revolutionary War – the siege of Boonesborough, Eliza’s own story is integrated into the remainder of Daniel Boone’s life, his constant uprooting of his family to unexplored areas, his failed business ventures, and his growing fame. This is a tale of life’s challenges in frontier Kentucky, Eliza’s grit and determination in meeting them, and above all, high adventure. It offers a deep look into the long and amazing life of Daniel Boone through the eyes of a young girl. *********** Here is a review by a blogging buddy, who just happens to be a Chef! “Firstly, I have to admit to almost no knowledge of Daniel Boone before reading this book, though I’m sure a U.S. readership knows far more. The book is written from the point of view of Eliza, a 10 year old who tries to protect her four year old brother Thatcher after witnessing their parents’ murder by the Shawnee. They are rescued by Daniel Boone, who takes them to the fort named after him. At this point, I expected the book to be entirely in sympathy with the settlers, presenting the Indigenous Americans as bloodthirsty savages. What I hadn’t realised was that Daniel Boone actually had a great deal of respect for the Native Americans. The real villains of the piece are the British who armed the Shawnees during the War of Independence, and some of the settlers who accused Boone of treachery. Obviously Boone frequently engaged in warfare with American Indians, but also praised them for their honesty. The complex life of Boone is presented in an interesting and engaging way and we also see the difficult lives of the settlers, particularly Eliza and Boone’s wife and eldest daughter, Jemima. The story of Jemima’s kidnap is told, but she is not presented as a helpless victim. Instead she is shown as intelligent and capable, able to shoot and make bullets. The women of the novel are full of courage and determination. I certainly learned a great deal from the novel. It is a sensitive subject, of course told from the settlers’ standpoint, while acknowledging, particularly in the Author’s Note, the many wrongs done to the Indigenous American peoples. I would strongly recommend this book as a story worth reading. Whether you are American or not it is a first rate read.” Kevin Ashton My thanks to Kevin for this wonderful review. I hope it will convince my followers to dip their toes into the book! 2 0

A toast to all my friends with some verse written by a fellow blogger, Charles Yallowitz, who can be found at the Legends of Windemere. We raise a glass to all our friendsOf the past and present To those you knewWithin your youthful days To the ones you meetAlong your winding path To the pals who wandered far awayNever entering your realm again To the allies stuck to you like glueNo matter where you live We raise a glass to all our friendsIn hopes of making more A picture of my high school class’s Honor Society trip to New York City our senior year (1961). We were so young and beautiful and handsome! The best part is that we’ve remained friends over all these years, getting together every five years and now two. 2 0

My next book, Daniel Boone and Me, will be out soon. The final editing is done and the cover is ready. This is a book for YA and older readers and is novella length, under 40,000 words. I’m hoping to find some fellow bloggers who would like to read an ARC for their comments and perhaps a mention on their blogs. Here’s the book blurb: When the two Corey children are orphaned in an Indian attack on the frontier of Kentucky, Daniel Boone tracks their escape through the woods and brings them to his home in Fort Boonesborough. There they will live with him, his wife Rebecca, and their eight children in their crowded cabin, where she and her brother Thatch learn much about Colonel Boone and why he is regarded as one of the greatest frontier explorers and hunters. Eliza is soon immersed in the hard life of a frontier woman – doing the many household chores, working gardens and crops, foraging for food in the woods, and hunting. After surviving a pivotal historic event in the Revolutionary War – the siege of Boonesborough, Eliza’s own story is integrated into the remainder of Daniel Boone’s life, his constant uprooting of his family to unexplored areas, his failed business ventures, and his growing fame. This is a tale of life’s challenges in frontier Kentucky, Eliza’s grit and determination in meeting them, and above all, high adventure. It offers a deep look into the long and amazing life of Daniel Boone through the eyes of a young girl. If anyone who would like a ARC of the book for comments and a possible review on their blog, I’d be most grateful. And please be honest! If you are interested, let me know at sailingawayng@gmail.com. Many thanks! 1 0

I spent a good part of this week without my main computer and all the information it holds. My fault. I have an external hard drive that I could have used with my laptop if I’d bothered to save anything. On Monday morning, I booted my computer and the screen saver came up but I couldn’t get the mouse or keyboard to work. No problem, change all the batteries. No joy. My husband brought his mouse in with its dongle. I had no idea what the heck a dongle is but discovered it’s that small device able to be connected to and used with a computer, especially to allow access to wireless broadband or use of protected software. Hubs changed dongles and tried his mouse. No joy. Then he went back to his computer and now his mouse and keyboard wouldn’t work. Even less joy. Once again my son-in-law came to the rescue. It seemed we had a dongle disaster, along with a plug that had pulled out of some hub or other. Got the computer up and going but the mouse and keyboard still didn’t register. So he took all the dongles and the two mice and figure out which went with which. Finally, joy. I am truly a digital idiot. 1 0

A short while ago, Hubs and I took a trip to Utah to see my son and his family. The last time I was there, I slipped on ice and face planted on my son’s concrete porch. Damage? Raccoon eyes, a fat nose and seven stitches. My daughter warned me not to fall on my face this time. I bought crampons for my shoes so I wouldn’t slip on ice, despite the forecast for good weather. So what happened? I fell on the back of my head. In the Salt Lake City airport, I stepped onto an old escalator with narrow steps and a speed rivaling the Daytona 500, holding on to two carry-ons. My foot got caught under one and I slid sideways, leaning up against the side of the escalator. When I got to the bottom, I fell back, cracking my head on an escalator step. PAIN! I recall my husband yelling at someone to push the button and turn off the escalator, then many hands helped me to a standing position. I touched the back of my head and my hand came away thoroughly bloody. I thought, What a stupid thing for me to do, then reached into my bag and pulled out a wad of paper toweling (I always carry paper toweling) and pressed it to the back of my head. After thirty minutes of waiting for the required paramedic visit and pressing on the cut, the blood stopped flowing. And I could tell the nice guy with the stretcher that I was alert x 5, had fallen on the hardest part of my skull, my eyesight was fine and I only had a mild headache.  I also told him I had had my EMT license. He left. The bump on my head grew to the size of a tangerine, and I bled a little more into a towel on my pillowcase that night but slept well. But I am happy to report my diagnosis was correct  – all I have at this point is a one-inch scab in my scalp. Now my daughter tells me not to fall on my face or the back of my head. And take an elevator instead of an escalator. Which I did, on the way back. Here is the charmer we got to spend time with in Utah: P.S. She is a water baby and swims like a fish. 0 0

Yep, I did it again. I am hosting one of the more than 200 different viruses that can cause a cold. Most of them are highly contagious. Rhinoviruses are the most common, but other viruses, such as adenoviruses, coronaviruses, human parainfluenza virus (HPIV), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), can also lead to mild or severe upper respiratory symptoms or common colds. I divide the colds I get into several categories: There are lots of colors this mucus can be: green, pink, yellow, cloudy white or brown. None on this color scale is particularly enjoyable, but you can almost diagnose yourself by the color. I am currently getting my only exercise by coughing.  2. The head cold. This sneaks up on you with either a runny nose or a nose you can’t breathe through. Sometimes it occurs in tandem with #1. You sound ridiculous when you talk with your nose stuffed and many people use some sort of nose drops to open themselves up. Unfortunately, you can get hooked on the nose drops and have to use them more and more frequently. I just stuff tissue up my nose since I can’t use it to breath anyway, and people just accept that I’m nuts. 3. The throat cold. This is strep throat, more common in kids. It comes on quickly, makes it painful to swallow, and your tonsils if you still have them (I still do, after many decades) are swollen with pockets of pus on the surface. Delightful. Right now I have a mild combination of 1 and 2. When we first moved to North Carolina and I became engaged in teaching, I had a cold of some sort from August to May of the following year. Having run through all of the germs I was likely to encounter in this state, I now only get to enjoy a cold one a couple of times a year (not counting Covid.) Of course, if I travel out of state, I generally come back accompanied by a new germ I met along the way.   The time line of my colds. Days 1–3: scratchy throat, coughing, runny nose or congestion, irritability, a continual longing for a nap. Days 4–7: Aches, fatigues, more naps, more irritability and an unwillingness to cook anything. Days 8–10: I should be getting over it but I’m still coughing and using the cold as an excuse not to do anything. Having written this, I’m heading off for a nap…. 1 0

At the feast of the Epiphany two Sundays ago, I started to give some serious thought to the ‘Three Kings’ while we were singing We Three Kings of Orient Are, one of my favorite Christmas carols. Who exactly were they? And why would they ‘travel afar?’ Celebrating the Epiphany In Duke Chapel, many years ago, the Reverend Peter J. Gomes, an old and dear friend, introduced his homily on the Three Wise Men by saying he had a lot in common with them: he was always late. So is this post! Contrary to popular Christmas tradition, the Bible does not use the terms “three wise men” or “three kings” to describe the travelers who went to see Jesus after his birth. (See Matthew 2:1). Instead, Matthew used the Greek word ma’goi to describe those who visited Jesus, that is, one of a learned and priestly class. The word likely refers to experts in astrology and other occult practices. A number of Bible translations call them “astrologers” or “magi The Three Magi, Byzantine mosaic, c. 565, Basilica of Sant’ Appolinare Nuovo, Ravena, Italy (restored during the 19th century). As here, Byzantine art usually depicts the Magi in Persian clothing, which includes breeches, capes, and Phrygian caps. Herodotus, a Greek historian of the fifth century B.C.E., said that the ma’goi of his day belonged to a Median (Persian) tribe that specialized in astrology and interpretation of dreams. Eastern tradition sets the number of Magi at 12, but Western tradition sets their number at three, probably based on the three gifts of ‘gold, frankincense, and myrrh.’ Attempts to give them names over the centuries settled on Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, based on Melkon, King of Persia; Gaspar, King of India; and Baldassar, King of Arabia. Girolamo da Santacroce (Italian, 1480-1556) ca. 1525-1530 (Renaissance) Where did they come from? Possible the Parthian Empire in Iran (then Persia), which stretched from eastern Syria to the fringes of India and which was tolerant of other religions. Its dominant religion was Zoroastrian with its priestly ma’goi class. Zoroastrianism is one of the world’s oldest monotheistic religions, having originated in ancient Persia. It contains both monotheistic and dualistic elements, and many scholars believe Zoroastrianism influenced the belief systems of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Although Matthew’s account does not explicitly cite the motivation for their journey, the Syrian Infancy Gospel states that they were pursuing a prophecy from their prophet, Zoroaster.    Another possibility of their origin is that they were Nabataean wise men from the courts of King Aretas IV (ca. 9 BC – AD 40). Nabataeans no doubt had a significant grasp of astronomy and used it for directions when they traveled by night. A new star would have caught their attention. The Nabataeans were renowned traders, who amassed great wealth by controlling many of the trade routes from Arabia through their capital of Petra and onto the coastal port of Gaza. Regardless of their origin, it is generally accepted that they followed a star. But was it a star? The fact that they needed to ask Herod for directions when they arrived suggests they were not being led to their final destination by a single bright object. If not a star, then what? The other, more astronomical, explanation is that there was indeed a bright object in the sky — a conjunction between planets and stars. A conjunction occurs when two or more celestial bodies appear to meet in the night sky and these events can continue every night in a similar location for days or weeks. If the wise men were to follow the moment of conjunction, it’s possible they would have been led in a specific direction. Perhaps the most promising is an alignment of Jupiter, Saturn, the moon and the sun in the constellation of Aries on April 17, 6 B.C. This conjunction happened in the early morning hours, which aligns with the Gospel’s description of the Star of Bethlehem as a rising morning star. Matthew records the visit of the Wise Men to Bethlehem, but before they arrived there, they met with Herod, the Roman-appointed king of Judea, a man who was the center of political and family intrigues in his later years. The New Testament portrays him as a tyrant. When the wise men asked him, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:1-2), pretended not to know what they spoke of. Herod was frightened by the apparent fulfillment of a messianic prophecy that threatened his rule, , so he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” After hearing from Herod, they set out, following the star they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. Thankfully, the magi were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, so when they left for their own country, they went by a different way. The Bible says: “Herod, seeing that he had been outwitted by the astrologers, flew into a great rage, and he sent out and had all the boys in Bethlehem and in all its districts killed, from two years of age and under, according to the time that he had carefully ascertained from the astrologers.” Adoration Of the Magi—Hieronymus Bosch (c. 1450-1516) Massacre (or Slaughter) of the Innocents is also recounted by (2:16–18), with thousands of deaths recorded by various historians, However, modern scholarship finds no evidence that it happened outside of Matthew’s description, though it is believable given Herod’s character. The Massacre of the Innocents, tempera on wood painting by Sano di Pietro (Ansano di Pietro di Mencio), c. 1470; in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are so many things about the story of the three Wise Men that confound explanation, so perhaps it is best