One clear Ice-cold January morning..

One Clear Ice-cold January Morning at the Beginning of the 21st Century by Roland Schimmelpfennig
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Actually I did not like it at all.
I gave one extra star as acknowledgement of some novelty in the writing style.
Why I did not like it?
Because there is NO STORY!
Author does not bother to give names to most of the characters and it reflects the climate of indifference.
I do not know what was the criteria to name few people, still there is no consequence, they are nobody's with names.
There is a try to drop a connecting thread - the wandering wolf, but I do not see it connecting anything, just another appearance without consequences.
Probably some experts will find a deeper sense in the absolutely unemotional writing style, atomization of characters. But I reach for the book to get feeling of some involvement.

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The greatest lies in history

The Greatest Lies In History: Spin, Doublespeak, Buck Passing And Official Cover Ups That Shaped The World by Alexander Canduci
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My first impression was very bad - this bombastic title.
As a result I treated the book initially with some suspicion and needed some time to regain confidence.
Second impression was also on negative side - lies that shaped the world.
For initial few stories from antiquity I did not find any serious consequences of a lie.
On the positive side I put interesting format of each story and solid work over historical data.
At this stage the deficiency was on my side - I felt overwhelmed with number and variety of facts and details.
I admit - this book was too hard for me.
Stories I enjoyed/appreciated most: Galileo, Vichy government, Fire of Rome, Chairman Mao win.


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MS Walk 2020

 It was supposed to be the 10th time, on 1st Sunday of June.

Supposed?
I registered at the earliest date, but in March came days of uncertainty and finally decision - the walk has been postponed till some unknown date :(

For long months it looked as postponed forever and finally a decision - do it your own way - on Sunday -18 October.

My own way?
It had to be not far from home so the choice was simple - walk a bit longer than one hour in Wattle Park.
And what about majestic Albert Lake and black swans?

Well, there is a creek or two and a bit of a pond, and ducks - it should do.

The day was a bit hazy.
I took my nordic walking poles and started walk from home.
I reached a completely overgrown pond...

No ducks, only frogs croaking.

Still I remember ducks here, they were very civilized ducks, I am sure they would not abandon a place without leaving a note.

I was right...

Just 200m east - Gardiner Creek...

My first concern was quality of water - was it used before for hands washing?

Anyway, I am used to hardships and restrictions, additionally I was encouraged by a single duck - just look carefully, it is there.

So I walked joyfully powered by memories from old days and hopes, that next year I will do it in Albert Park, and black swans will be there...

Due to uncertainty I did not make much noise about this walk, so I declared a quite modest fundraising target - $199. And I exceeded it by a dozen!

Thank you very much my sponsors.

To see my memories from previous years - click a multiple sclerosis label under this entry.