"May the best day of your past Be the worst day of your future." My Dad always wished me this Irish Blessing and I want it to matter today and every other day in my life.
Sunday 7 June 2015
Friday 22 May 2015
Death in Printers Alley - Book Review
Book Review: Death in Printers Alley
Author: Ken
Brigham
Personal
Quality Rating: 5
Reviewer: Yvette
van Niekerk (South Africa)
Summary:
This Science Fiction Novel revolves around a murder taking
place in ‘Printers Alley’ – which is associated with musicians and
nightclubs. Bonz Bagley the owner
of a club in the street is murder in the early hours of Sunday morning. A former detective, Shane Hadley hears the
shots fired and wheels his wheelchair into the direction of the fired
shots. On reaching the porch overlooking
‘Printers Alley’ he see’s someone running away from the crime scene, with a
slight hitch in their gait.
The police arrive within minutes and detective Hardy Seltzer
interviews detective Shane Hadley. A
connection is made and Hardy and Shane start with their detective work. Hardy goes with his gut and arrests Jody and
Shane still keep the investigation going on his end. Not believing that the criminal will hand
over the gun.
KiKi (Katya Karpov) is Shanes wife and she is suspicious
about data she thought did not make sense.
Cy Bartalak and his wife Beth work alongside KiKi and she has her doubts
about the results of the tests. She
looks access Beth’s computer and finds information that is damming to the
project.
Social / Historical
Context:
This dynamic story tells about the drive for success in the
business world, the craziness of the academic world – the quest to find a cure
for Alzheimer’s disease. The morals and
standards of people involved.
The policing and the politics that is ongoing throughout the
story and the way Hardy and Shane work together. How they reach their different goals.
Writing Style:
The writing style to my mind is evocation and common
place. It narrates the experimental
drugs that are used on people and the outcome of the tests. The story is really about finding a cure for
Alzheimer’s and the people involved in the studies. The focus is on the studies and detective
work around finding the murder. The
characters are exciting and interesting.
The writer knows the academic world and is able to describe environment,
his investigative skills are really good.
I think the writer has the ability to draw you into the story and you
keep wondering what’s going to happen next.
I enjoyed the read and to be honest I just could not put the
book down, it was thrilling and interesting and I like the angle the writer
took.
My Thoughts:
I liked the story; I like Katya Karpov – the neurologist,
her retired detective husband Shane Hadley and the people she was associated
with. Beth and Cy Bartalak at the
university. Bartalak’s business dealing
and the cunning way he draws people into his business venture. The murder of one of the club owners in
Printer’s Alley, Bonz Bagley. Not
forgetting the detective doing all the hard work Hardy Seltzer, not your normal
run of the mill kind of guy. Excellent
story! Must read!
Wednesday 20 May 2015
To live a Godly life
In the half-century that I have
been around I have come to the conclusion that it is imperative for me to live
a Godly life. I want to please my Lord
and Saviour and I want to be gracious as I grow older. As I have been thinking about what it takes
to get to living such a live I want to share my thoughts with you.
How to live a Godly
life?
Let’s start by following the Lord
Jesus’s instructions as it is written in Mark 12: 29 – 31 (CEB) and Jesus
replied, “The most important one is Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord,
and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being,
with all your mind, and with all your strength.
The second is this, you will love your neighbour as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.”
Imitators
Because I am human and have
problems with my fellow man I will get angry and upset with them, family and
neighbour. How to deal with my
frustrations and get on with my live turning more Godly? The Lord Jesus speaks to us in John 13: 15 ‘I
have given you an example, that as I have, so should you do.’ Here’s the first part we need to do ‘follow
by example’, and to confirm this Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11: 1 ‘Imitate me
as I imitate Christ.’ So we need to
read, learn and follow the Lord Jesus Christ.
Another scripture to consider is Ephesian 5: 1 ‘Be imitators of God as
dear children’.
Disobedient
Since I didn’t always allow
myself to be obedient and follow the Lord’s footstep, the word says that in
Matthew 12:44 “… the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order.” Now there is a chance for the devil to come
and move in. I was the one who neglected
to stay in the word of God. Making me
lukewarm as a Christian, weakening me in my trails and testing’s.
Turning back
Proverbs 8: 17 – 21 ‘I love those
who love me, and those who seek me find me.
With me are riches and honour, enduring wealth and righteousness, along
the paths of justice, bestowing wealth on those who love me and making their
treasuries full.’ I now start to study
the scriptures and look to become more like the Lord. I want to chance my unrighteousness into
righteousness.
Psalms 1: 1 – 3 ‘Blessed is the
man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of
sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.
But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he mediates
day and night. He is like a tree planted
by streams of water, which yields it fruit in season and whose leaf does not
wither. Whatever he does prospers.’
John 14: 21-27 ‘Whoever has my
commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I too will love him and show myself to him.
Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to
show yourself to us and not to the world?”
Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My father will love him, and we will come to
him and make our home with him. He who does
not love me will not obey my teaching. These
words you hear are not my own, they belong to the Father who sent me. All this I have spoken while still with
you. But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit
whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind
you of everything I have said to you.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not
be afraid.”
Repentance of Sin
2 Chronicles 7: 14 “If my people,
which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my
face, and turn from their wicked ways;
then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal
their land.” As I consider my position I
have realised that there are things that aren’t right in my own life, I have to
repent and change my ways. Coming back
to the Lord my God.
Read you Bible
We teach our children in the
Afrikaans Sunday Schools to ‘read your Bible and pray each day, so that you are
able to grow spiritually.’ This is my
advice too, read your Bible and pray each day.
James 1: 22 “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive
yourselves.” And Matthew 4: 4 Jesus answered,
“It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that
comes from the mouth of God.’” 2 Timothy
3: 6 says ‘All scripture is inspired by God and profitable [for something] for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;’
With these scriptures I am able to
meditate on God’s word, learn to imitate Him and live a Godly life.
Allow God to change me
Ezekiel 36: 26 – 27 “I will give
you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart
of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be
careful to keep my laws.” I have come to
that point in my life that I need to allow the Lord my God to change me. I have to let this happen so that I am able
to grow spiritually. Taking the
responsibility for my own life, look at what Ephesians 4: 24 says “and to put
on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” By clothing myself each day with Jesus I will
become a new person. My ways start to
change, it will be seen by others on how I speak to them, what I say and what I
do. People will notice on my person what
I wear and look like, how I react and what my likes and dislikes will be
like.
James 1: 21 says ‘therefore, rid
yourselves of everything impure and every expression of wickedness, and with a gently
spirit welcome the word planted in you that can save your souls.’
Persecution
In 2 Timothy 3: 12 ‘in fact, everyone who
wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,’ people will
find you difficult to live with, it will frustrate them because your life style
with clash with theirs. They will
persecute you because you do things soberly and consciously not wanting to make
a fool of yourself or embarrass yourself.
Daily Devotion
In Ephesians 1: 16 Paul reminds
us to pray for a “Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation” now then also pray this
prayer with me Ephesians 1:16-23 (CEB) ‘I don’t stop
giving thanks to God for you when I remember you in my prayers. I pray that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, will give you a spirit
of wisdom and revelation that makes God known to you. I pray that
the eyes of your heart will have enough light to see what is the hope of God’s
call, what is the richness of God’s glorious inheritance among believers, and what is the overwhelming greatness of God’s power that is
working among us believers. This power is conferred by the energy of God’s
powerful strength. God’s power
was at work in Christ when God raised him from the dead and sat him at God’s
right side in the heavens, far above every ruler and
authority and power and angelic power, any power that might be named not only
now but in the future. God put
everything under Christ’s feet and made him head of everything in the church, which is his body. His
body, the church, is the fullness of Christ, who fills everything in every way.’ In praying this prayer we will allow the Lord
to open our spiritual eyes to His word, and help us in our development.
Their point of view
It is really difficult for me to
see other people’s point of view when I want it my way. So now I am learning to just give others the
right to their own point of view. I don’t
know everything and should allow others to discover their own way to the Lord
and not try and enforce it on them. Difficult lesson for me but I am working on
this.
Accommodating
Because I have become so set on
having my own way it is difficult for me to accommodate other people. “It’s my way or the highway.” Now, I have to understand that not everybody
will do as I say. I have to practice restraint
and patience and learn to understand them.
I also have to love my enemies, because God loves them and me.
Serve others
Caring for other people is
something we need to do each day, I have teenagers. I also need to care about other people, those
in need. James 2: 16 “if one of you says
to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical
needs, what good is it?” So when you can help your fellow man, the one who is
struggling. Give with a happy heart,
clothing or food and if you can with money.
What goes around comes
around
If you treat others
disrespectfully, be sure it will come back to you. Treat each other with respect and kindness;
do unto others as you want done unto you.
Peace in the home
In 1 Thessalonians 4: 11 ‘Aim to live quietly, mind your own
business, and earn your own living, just as I told you’. By living a peaceful live we must guard
against becoming filled with pride, which simply is judging other people and
thinking we are that much better than they are.
Allowing ourselves to be filled with pride; we are allowing sin to come
back into our lives. Pride is sin, when
we have so much pride we become greedy, we lust after, we hate other and other
sins come out.
Spread the good news!
Living a Christian life requires we
share the Good News! Speak to people
about what God has done for each of you.
Be a living testament to the Lord.
I never allow people to say bad things about my God. I stand up for what I believe. God loves you.
Go to church
In living a Godly life you need
to fellowship with other Christians, we grow by going to Church and learning
the word of God. People need people to
grow spiritually. Fellowship with other
Christians makes the word come to life.
God works through each one of us and we need to be there for each other.
Tuesday 19 May 2015
Prayer
LORD, I have
heard of Your fame; I stand in awe of Your deeds, LORD. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them
known; in wrath remember mercy. His splendor
was like the sunrise; rays flashed from HIS hand, where His power was hidden. Amen
Tuesday 12 May 2015
The Secret History of another Rome : Book Review
Book Review: The Secret History of another Rome
Author: Bear
Realest book: April
2015
First book: Excellent
Personal
Quality Rating: 4
Reviewer: Yvette
van Niekerk (South Africa)
Summary:
The Science Fiction story foretells a future in the 2600’s. A young child named Octavian depart Table
Mountain in Southern Africa to go to the new country Alexandria, his mother
accompanies him on the flight. The child
reaches an aged where he is permitted to change his name and he chooses to be
called Ranulf. Ranulf is being trained to
become the next Supreme Pontiff of the Empire of Rome at Alexandria. His teachers are called Librarian which looks
a lot like priests.
The current Pontiff dies and Ranulf has to fill his shoes,
the change is dramatic and it take Ranulf some time to settle into the
role. He is constantly learning and he
starts to investigate his predecessor Julius VII Heraclitus whom by the way was
a native of “Bloemfontein”. I absolutely
enjoyed this as “Bloemfontein” is a real place in Southern Africa, the Free
State.
Because of Ranulfs curiosity he ventures out of the enclosed
Librarian property into the city and he doesn’t realise that he has someone
watching over him. Ranulf is guided by
tutors and Murmur as he called him is one he like. Something interesting pops up about this character
which made the story even more interesting.
Ranulf is on a quest in finding out the truth and there are
secrets he starts to uncover with the help of a mysterious stranger.
Social / Historical
Context:
This is a normal day-to-day life, with constant teaching and
learning and the relationships that Ranulf make. The strategic way the Librarians keep Ranulf
in the dark with their half-truths. The
venturing out of the Library into the City and the way Ranulf discovers the
Secrets.
The story hits home as I live in Southern Africa and a
number of places are mentioned in the book.
Which makes the story credible and interesting.
The plot thickens when the one person you don’t suspect is
actually a traitor, I was so surprised.
Then the dismissing of this person?
Writing Style:
The writing style to my mind is evocation and some common
place. It narrated a journey in the life
of a young man being taught to life according to a set thinking. The writers to my thinking are someone set on
learning.
The writer’s view of the years to come was interesting and
made me think that everything was formal and unsent. When the immortal spoke to Ranulf ‘You do not
know who we are, yet you deal with us, trust us.’ It made me think people
believe whatever they see. If you don’t question
you won’t know.
My Thoughts:
I enjoyed the story and feel it was a good read, I love
reading of the places referred to in the book and it sounds believable. I enjoyed the teachers (Librarians) they were
wise and never got on my nerves. The
story revolves around a young man being groomed for a really important
position. Ranulf’s Tutoring and learning;
all the interesting events that happen in his life. The loss of his mother and the secrets that is
unsolved. I like the immortals that
spoke to him on occasion in the Great Hall, how they reminded him to relax and
still. Ranulf revisited his past on many
occasions and the story get really good near the end.
Short version
The young child Octavian whom changes his name to Ranulf
becomes Supreme Pontiff of the Empire of Rome at Alexandria in the mid 2600’s. The Librarians who teach and tutor him, after
twenty some years on the throne Ranulf starts to think back on his life. He reminisced about his mother and there time
together and how he made decisions. He
thinks of his relationships with some of the people. To my thinking he was in search of the truth and
the Secret History which finally become clear near the end. The mysterious strangers or the Immortals
that he encounters and how he finally gets to uncover the Secret.
Saturday 9 May 2015
Happy Mothers Day
http://generalcarinsurancequotes.com/happy-mothers-day
To all the mothers all over the world : Happy Mothers Day, I wish you a splendid day with loads of love, flowers, chocolates, and may children around your table.
:-) You are a blessing!
To all the mothers all over the world : Happy Mothers Day, I wish you a splendid day with loads of love, flowers, chocolates, and may children around your table.
:-) You are a blessing!
Wednesday 6 May 2015
Clan of Midnight - Book Review
Book Review: Clan of Midnight
Author: Richard
Phillip Hoffman
Personal
Quality Rating: 4
Reviewer: Yvette
van Niekerk (South Africa)
Summary:
This Science Fiction Mystery Novel is written using the
setting of the California. The story
kicks off with murders which are reported on Channel 6. The main character David Zane is a magician
who doesn't age. So he looks really good
for a 65 year old chap.
Detective Roberts contacts Zane to see what he thought of
the murders and if there was away in solving the murders. After inspecting the bodies Zane suggests
that the Detective see if they can get some cash to pay the matron Bonny St.
Claire to help with the investigation.
The story is interesting and there is a lot going on with
nostalgia around Marilyn Monroe, Walt Disney and the different immortals.
Social / Historical
Context:
Considering that David Zane is now out of the Underworld and
living between people his day-to-day living is normal with some dynamics of
being a magician and noticing other things taking place around him. Zane starts to pick up that it isn't just one
person doing all the killings but a number of killers. It gets interesting and now the story starts
to come alive.
Writing Style:
The writing style to my mind is a little evocation and common
place. It narrated a person who is deep
in the magical world living among humans.
The writer enjoys describing his characters so you get a good idea of
what they look like.
To me the writer has a great imagination and enjoyed writing
this story, it does have a strong detective pull in the story and the other
immortals are interesting too.
Somewhat graphic in the sense of language I do believe the
rating of 18 years is a good thing. The
writer enjoyed the story telling which makes it a good read. Great job!
My Thoughts:
A page turner for me, I enjoyed the story and loved David
Zane he seemed like the type of guy I would like to talk with. I felt the intrigue and enjoyed the discovery
of the Clan of Midnight which revealed the demonic rituals and evil plans that
was being plotted.
Short version
The telling of David Zane an immortal magician whom is made
known and is contacted by the police to come and give some insight on a number
of murders which they are baffled by. Life
starts to heat up a little when he is exposed to the community and of course
the underworld hears of it too.
Because of his training he is well equipped to deal with
every situation that arises and soon discovers there are a number of killers involved
with the murders. As the story
progresses you find that an evil clan involved in demonic rituals live in the
same county as Zane making life very interesting for him.
It turns out that David Zane the immortal magician stands
between the people and the Clan of Midnight.
The story is a page turner, which cannot be put down.
Sunday 26 April 2015
The Last Best Thing - Book Review
Book Review: The Last Best Thing
Author: Kate
Sebeny
Personal
Quality Rating: 3
Reviewer: Yvette
van Niekerk (South Africa)
Summary:
This Novella is written using the setting of the farm in
Iowa. A short story not more than 84
pages starts off with a statement from Sam.
The characters in the story are all in the retired years, people that
have come together due to circumstances.
Betty’s daughter Libby comes to live with her mother to help
with her ageing father who suffers from Alzheimer’s and Betty’s friends Sam and
Sarah and Joe. The story takes a turn
when one of the characters needs help in committing suicide. This happens suddenly and to be honest I
didn’t expect it from this person as they supposedly loved the other
person.
A lot of bantering takes place which makes the story
enjoyable to read. Then a twist in the
story takes place when someone turns up that the farm house inquiring about the
deceased person.
Social / Historical
Context:
The normal day-to-day living in a very tight community of no
more than 5 people and what they do and talk about. It was amazing to see how these old folk
adjusted and helped each other. They
seemed to be living life as it presented itself to them. I felt the hardship they were facing and yet
it was not that difficult as they had each other comradely.
It reminded me of my
mom in some way the way she is ageing and how thin she too was. The way they coupe with matters and be what
they are there and then.
Writing Style:
The writing style to my mind is common place. It narrated a relationship with each other
out of circumstances and friendships.
The writer seems to understand the ageing process and has sympathy with
the characters.
It narrates a group of elderly people living together due to
circumstance beyond their control.
My Thoughts:
The story depicted a telling of ageing people, circumstances
that made for an unforeseen decision on a suicide or was it a murder or was it
euthanasia? The person that assisted
with the act of taking care of this persons dilemma didn’t consider their own
conscience and the impact of their decision later on.
As fiction I think was very close to real life experience
and the problems that elderly people face with sickness and misfortune.
Short version
Betty and Gary with a daughter Libby are portrayed in the
beginning of the story; two of the characters go through to the end of the
story and an unexpected romance comes into play. Sam and Sarah with Joe and some doggies are
friends with Betty. A murder, suicide or
euthanasia happens and the person who assisted with the act becomes senile and
starts speaking to the dead person. What
a tragedy. A friend who comes from
Amsterdam to live in Iowa and someone that pops into these people’s lives
looking for the deceased person.
Something no-one considered.
Sunday 19 April 2015
Rustic living – Antiek Sjiek
Well hello, I was fortunate to travel with my husband to
work one day and he drives a lot. We
drove from Witbank to Ermelo but went through Hendrina. Now believe me when I tell you they have a
very quaint little Coffee Shop “Antiek Sjiek”.
My husband tells me that this is “The Coffee Shop” to visit
when and if you are travelling through Hendrina. So needless to say we stopped early on our
way to Ermelo and took a break. On
entering the Old house we were greeted by a sweet young African woman. She was friendly and showed us around. Walking through the old house we saw many old
antique artifacts.
I loved all the beautiful tea sets on display, which by the
way are for sale. We took a tour of the
old house and then into the back yard we were greeted by a beautiful old
car. Walking around there were some old
bicycles and then we went into another little shop full of the most interesting
handcrafts. My husband felt in necessary
to buy some fudge which by the way was awesome.
Taking our seats we were promptly served, a young African
lady approached us and took our order.
While we were enjoying the lovely surroundings we waited for our
coffee.
Ha ha to my surprise my darling husband received his Coffee
in a chipped mug and my Cappuccino was
in a nice cup and source with a nice warm chocolate muff. What an experience, it was different and
really pleasant.
So do yourself a favor, whenever you find yourself in
Hendrina make a point of stopping at the “Antiek Sjiek” Coffee shop. You won’t regret it.
Rust Bucket Chronicles - Book Review
Book Review: Rust Bucket Chronicles
Author: Ted
Blasche
Personal
Quality Rating: 4
Reviewer: Yvette
van Niekerk (South Africa)
Summary:
The story is about the Rusty Buckley, a young man who joined
the army in NewArk another planet. Some writing about the army and the base and
what they experience, if you are a guy I think you would enjoy that, and then a
strange thing happens there is attempt to kill Queen Arrabella.
It’s clear that Rysty has always dream of joining the Third
Rifles and now things are going his way.
A change of events bring him into a Garbassas where he needs to fight
giant lizards. Tee hee great fun,
exciting and exhilarating.
The story’s based around the army as many weapons and army
tactics are used in the story.
Social / Historical
Context:
A page turner and the science fiction are interesting I
enjoyed the read. Many exciting stuff
that happens in the swamp and there are some interesting characters in the
story.
An experience I never had before and it was interesting to
see how the author got the things in place.
I like the giant lizards and the action around it.
Writing Style:
The writing style to my mind is evocation. The writer definitely enjoyed the military
thing, I don’t know what experience he has but it seems he is knowledgeable on
that area. He enjoyed writing the story
and had a lot of interesting ideas. I
could imagine many of the places and it was almost realistic at times.
My Thoughts:
I felt sorry for Rust in the beginning of the story he had
been through a lot but thank goodness life changes and people get some exciting
breaks.
My science fiction stories are growing it seems, people in
general have an extraordinary imagination, it was fun, I think people that like
something different than your day to day love story will enjoy this book. A change from all the drama and some action
is always good. I think this was a good
read.
In short
I believe the story is based on the military and that type
of thing. I think of the weapons and the training and the implementation of
strategy are important to the story.
Rusty Buckley - young chap that get a great break and then starts to
fulfil his dream, and not the forgetting the attempt on the life of their Queen
Arrabella. Also something not to be
missed is the giant lizards …. Wow the trip into Garbassas was
interesting. I thought the senses were
believable and I think the author is creative and has away with words. As the story evolves in each stage the story
grows interesting and ends well. I like
the read.
Wednesday 15 April 2015
Are you Craving God?
Matthew 6:33
King James Version (KJV)
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
I have been thinking about this verse and to be honest I wonder how often I really was 'seeking the kingdom of God'? My passion is obviously for the Lord. It has been said that I cannot speak to people without bringing the Lord into the conversation. With the result in that people steer clear of me and my conversations. When we go somewhere I like to say grace before we have something to eat. It stresses other people out.
Now I am wondering by doing all that I do, am I truly 'seeking the kingdom of God'?
The latest thing that is on my mind is to draw near to the Lord, but how? I have now decided to do things differently, I am now praying that the Holy Spirit work through me, so that I do not offend other people.
So I hope that you and I can be looking to the Lord, please guide me and help me in seeking You Lord.
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